


Free X Spirited

by Vay



Category: Kpop - Fandom, SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Angel and Devil, Angst, Character Death, Curses, Demons, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Evil vs Good, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Ghosts, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Multi, Paranormal, Paranormal Investigators, Past Abuse, Polyamory, Religion, Religion as in there is devils god and angels, There is a moment of contemplation of suicide but very brief, but like sort of..., conte, happy and dark moments are spread throughout, mentioned death, revengeful ghosts, this story is about the paranormal
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-19
Updated: 2019-04-17
Packaged: 2019-04-25 01:44:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 80,578
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14368215
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vay/pseuds/Vay
Summary: Being Paranormal Investigators was probably not going to pay the bills, in the slightest. However this was not going to stop these three from doing what they find the utmost fascination in. Even the curses and gifts stowed upon these three were only pushing their research farther, however you always have to be careful when you try to communicate with the other side.





	1. TEASER

**Author's Note:**

  * Translation into Français available: [Free X Spirited de Vay ( Traduction française)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14660945) by [Ilo2498](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ilo2498/pseuds/Ilo2498)



> This is only a teaser of sorts for the story to come. I hope you enjoy it, and tell me what you think.

Jeonghan’s reaction was natural, unavoidable, necessary. The brute force was crucial, the inflicted pain was vital, if he was going to save anyone that day. That’s what he repeated to himself, practically a mantra when his body went on auto pilot and targeted in on Joshua. But these lines which he repeated in his head endlessly as he regained control of his body, and backed away from Joshua who was caressing his reddened cheek, were nothing but pathetic excuses.

He never wanted to hurt anyone, especially not Joshua. 

But someone was going to die if he didn’t. 

The memories torture him in snapshots: Seungcheol who was standing peacefully in the aged house’s living room when he left, was on his back when he walked back in. Joshua, originally upstairs planting cameras and sound equipment, was straddling the older boy. The latter had his soft, delicate hands curled around Seungcheol’s neck almost desperately. Pure anger flashed in the boy’s eyes, a single tear escaped and outlined the elegant bone structure. Seuncheol, always careful, had one hand gently wrapped around one of the boy’s wrists, a thumb grazing the skin lovingly. The other hand reaching up to caress the murderous boy’s cheek, wiping away the stray tear. A forgiving smile displayed clearly, even when he weakly gasped for air. 

Jeonghan did not think, only acted. When he walked in, his eyes focusing on his two favorite people on the living room floor, one close to death, Jeonghan became pure instinct. The man dropped his bags. His feet stumbled before sprinting towards the two. In seconds Jeonghan tightly gripped Joshua’s wrists and pulled him off of Seungcheol. Joshua squirmed in the hold, screaming nonsense and kicking his feet, barely missing Seungcheol. Quickly, Jeonghan with practically no mercy launched the boy at a wall. Joshua’s small cry of pain had Seungcheol reaching out for Jeonghan. 

Jeonghan was not having it. 

He pushed an arm against the boy’s chest, gazing into the eyes of his boyfriend. They hadn’t changed. And so when the boy reached out to claw Jeonghan, the older boy did the only thing he thought wise. He swung his hand back, and forced it against the younger boy’s cheek. He did it once, twice, thrice. 

And then the boy in front of him crumpled. He was back.

And Jeonghan’s mind cleared from the fog. So was he.

And Jeonghan never wanted to hurt Joshua, but someone was going to if he didn’t. 

He so badly wished they never took this job.


	2. Chapter 1: Recreational Vehicle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A few moments later, the boy pulled away and gazed up at his face. Tear streaks painting pictures of horror on the poor boy’s face caused Joshua to gently brush away the last few tears away. “ Where are your parents?” Joshua asked.
> 
> The boy gazed up at him, and with a stuttering breath instead asked, “ Are you like me?”

“ Put that book down, or God so help me. ” A sultry voice threatened. 

“ Like God would help you.” Another voice, softer, teased, before a gasp escaped his lips as sand was flicked onto the pages of his book.

The voices belonged to two young boys. While one boy fashioned luscious, dirty-blonde hair, pulled back into a ponytail, the other had short brown hair perfectly fitted against his face. They sported swim trunks, the latter however added a white shirt to his outfit. With a whine, the boy of longer hair let out an annoyed whine, flicking another pinch of sand onto the other’s book.

With the sun wrapping the boys in blankets of heat, the water tempting them only a few feet away, the impatient young man found his current playmate completely unbothered by nature’s calling. The boy with the book, curled his knees in closer to himself as he tried to shield it from another attack. One of his arms hooking around them as a barrier. 

“ Joshua! We came to the beach! Put away your God-damn book.” The impatient boy groaned, as he crossed his legs as much a child would in an argument. 

The boy Joshua, chuckled and flipped to the next page. “ You use God’s name in vain merely seconds after asking for His help; That’s definitely what you’re supposed to do.” 

“ JOSHUA!” The accused exclaimed, however said boy quickly became quiet. Content with the change, Joshua peacefully continued to read the book in his lap. It was a random novel he found at a small town bookstore during their travels. 

Suddenly, Joshua felt the faintest touches press against his waist, and a tiny squeal left his lips. The boy’s legs instinctually flattened out, and his arms flew out ready to attack whoever. When there were more fingers poking into his side, causing giggles to erupt from his lips, Joshua cried out the man’s name: “ Jeonghan! Stop! ” He laughed, his book having fallen off his lap onto the sand beside him. 

The hands released his side, and Joshua grumbled from his spot, sideways on the sand. Pushing himself up, he spit out some stray sand that found their place on his lips, and dusted some off of his arms. 

With false innocence, Jeonghan asked, “ What’s wrong? Why’d you put your book down? Are you ready to play?” 

Joshua’s cat like eyes glanced up at Jeonghan who sat uncharacteristically, patiently on his knees beside him. If one would squint the wagging of a tail could practically be seen behind him. Joshua thinks Jeonghan would be a cute puppy, but incredibly annoying. 

“ Why can’t you just play by yourself?” Joshua questioned as he picked up his book. Pouting slightly, he blew some of the sand off of his book. The sand blew with the wind towards the water. Joshua’s eyes trained in on them until they blended in with the world in front of him. 

“ I can.” Jeonghan responded, with his voice dropping an octave. He crawled towards the boy who looked wearily at him. “ But I like to play with you more.” He whispered, his eyes refusing to break the contact. Joshua, reached a hand back to steady himself as he narrowed his eyes at Jeonghan. In response, Joshua rolled his eyes with a small chuckle. 

“Fine.” Joshua practically sang, as he gaze focused on Jeonghan’s lips. “ I’ll play with you.” 

“Sweet,” Jeonghan’s voice was practically lost to the wind, as he reached forward and pressed his lips upon Joshua’s. Both of the young boys’ eyes closed, their world melting into one. The call of the sea vanishing. The pull of the wind, unmoving. 

But like a summoning, their spirits were separated at the call of their names; 

“Jeonghan, Jisoo! Guess what I have!” A third male voice echoed. Jeonghan’s head dangled down, and collapsed onto Joshua’s chest as if the call to reality was a pound of a thousand stones weighing heavily on his back. 

Joshua chuckled and lifted his head to see a well built man, dressed in yellow swim trunks and a white tank-top sprinting across the sand. Messy black hair bounced on his head. His hands waving happily in the air. There was a moment on his face that one could see him realize the sand was in fact hot, and the concept of sandals was a product he was ready to invent, patent, and sell in the upcoming future. 

“ What is it, Seungcheol?” Joshua asked, a content smile on his lips. Two arms wrapped around Joshua’s waist as Seungcheol skidded close. The tall man slid perfectly in front of the two, and squatted down. A chain of a new set of keys dangled in front of Joshua’s face. Confused, the young boy reached out and gently fiddled with the keys. 

“ A new car?” Joshua asked. The comment seemed to perk Jeonghan up, as he lifted his head quickly and snatched the keys out of Seungcheol’s grip. The long haired boy analyzed the keys closely. “ What happened to the old one?” 

“I sold the old one.” Seungcheol responded happily. 

Jeonghan narrowed his eyes, suspicious. “ You loved the old one.”

“You hated the old one.”

“ Since when did that matter?”

“ Since when do you question when I do something nice for you?”

“ Since it started with your car, that’s when. Why does it suddenly matter?” 

“ Since you felt car-sick in the car yesterday.” 

“ I didn’t feel car-sick yesterday.”

Joshua interjected; “ Hannie, you felt sick yesterday?”

“ I just said I didn’t feel car-sick.” Jeonghan groaned.

Seungcheol noted; “You literally told me to pull over because you didn’t feel good.”

“ I didn’t,”

Joshua’s hand gently caressed Jeonghan’s cheek, “ When did this happen?”

Sighing, Jeonghan grabbed Joshua’s hand that was placed on his cheek. “ It didn’t. I said JOSHUA felt sick. Not me.”

Seungcheol leaned back slightly, his lips forming a pout slightly as he thought back. “ That makes sense. You don’t get car sick.”

“Oh my god.” Jeonghan groaned, and slid a hand across his face.

“That still doesn’t change the fact that somebody felt car sick, and I didn’t want that to happen anymore.”

Joshua rested his other hand on Seungcheol’s knee gently. “That’s sweet, but you didn’t have to. It’s not like we spend every day in your car.”

There was silence. 

The wind blew Jeonghan’s ponytail slightly, and as if it whispered secrets into his ear, his eyes widened with knowing. “ You. Did. Not.”   
“ Come, come, come!” Seungcheol jumped up to his feet quickly. Joshua imagined him as a dog too, however as one of those to tug on the leash to the point you were being dragged across a park, kind of dog. 

Joshua reluctantly pushed himself up from his spot, pulling Jeonghan up with him as he did. They followed the other boy off the beach, and to the boardwalk. Once there, Jeonghan felt his body slowly deflate. For the past few months the boys have traveled together for work; 

The Paranormal Investigators Dream Team. Originally the team worked as online analyzers; Clients would email them or discover their website with paranormal, or the like, problems and ask for advice. With the information given, and information probed out of them, the team would dissect it until they came up with plausible causes and solutions. It was simple, easy, and something the three all had interest in. However, it did not pay the bills. They did not even receive a small check from their work done. That is until they received offers to do house calls, and noticed there were multiple zeros printed on a checks ready for them when they were done. 

It was soon after that they each left their respective houses, selling them, renting them out or whatever seemed right at the time. They hit the road together, living in hotels in the towns where they would work, or staying in the haunted areas. Recently they hit a rut; They were sleeping multiple nights in Seungcheol’s car when they didn’t have work so they wouldn’t waste money. 

And it seemed Seungcheol was determined to change their life around, determined enough to sell the car he was driving for over six years now. Determined enough to trade said car for a Recreational Vehicle. Determined enough to pose himself in front of the black, slightly dirty, RV, with a silly grin on his face. 

“ Isn’t she beautiful?” He remarked as he slightly slapped the side of the vehicle. Jeonghan swears he heard it creak, as he swears he saw it sway. 

“She’s um-” Joshua started.

“ Is it too late to get your car back?” Jeonghan blurted out. Joshua’s eyes widened as if what Jeonghan had said was cursing them all to hell right at that moment.

“Jeonghan.” He scolded softly. In the corner of his eye, Joshua spotted Seungcheol’s grin slowly fading away. “ Can we see the inside?” 

Seungcheol perked up straight away and opened up the door, holding it for the two to walk right on in. Joshua was the first one in. He glanced around. The outside did not do the inside justice, although the interior was not award winning either. It was simple really, a mixture of beige, brown and whites. A small kitchen blending in with the lunch table. A bathroom squeezed behind the two, with a small archway to a large bed. Storage room was in the ceiling and on the outside of the RV. Joshua, as soon as he stepped in, knew of Jeonghan’s top 5 complaints.

1: Not enough Privacy (Although he didn’t know the word)

2: The kitchen was too small, not enough room to cook. (Not that he did.)

3: Not enough room to walk; Someone will trip ( Very likely)

4: Not everyone will be able to share the bed, if someone is driving (Seungcheol probably has ideas)

5: Little room for paranormal equipment (Joshua’s problem)

When Jeonghan shoved his way in, Joshua watched the boy’s eyes scan over every corner of the place. Seungcheol did too. Joshua noticed Seungcheol’s fingers fiddle with each other in front of him. Letting out a sigh, Joshua slid his own a hand into Seungcheol’s. He pulled him farther into the RV, as Jeonghan inspected every nook and cranny. As Jeonghan named his top five complaints, Seungcheol, albeit nervously, responded; 

“ We can close the door to the bedroom. The table turns into a bed. Whoever wants privacy can separate the two.”

“ Those who will cook will be the only ones in the kitchen at that time. Others will sit at the table or upfront in the driver’s seat.”

“ People can trip anywhere. Take your time you should be fine.”

“ We will take turns, and some nights we will park to the side and sleep together.”

“ There is enough room for packing it up in the side of the car. We only take it out when necessary. That means you, Joshua.” Seungcheol announced.

The boy called, widened his eyes surprised to be brought into the conversation. “ Wait, why am I being targeted? You all use the equipment too!” He announced. 

Jeonghan smiled and rolled his eyes, as he crossed his own arms. “ Yeah but Shua, you like to fiddle with that stuff. You tinker with it, and study random stuff with it. It creates a mess honestly.”

Joshua’s nose crinkled up slightly, and he looked off to the side. His cheeks dusted pink. “ I didn’t know it was that much of a problem. Sorry.”

Seungcheol quickly pulled at Joshua’s hand and pulled the smaller boy against his side. Seungcheol nuzzled his nose against the opposite cheek. “ Not a problem, Josh.”

Jeonghan laughed softly. “ But we can’t be having random equipment laying around here if we are going to be living here.”

“Wait.” Seungcheol muttered, “Wait, wait, wait!” Seungcheol’s voice growing in levels, his excitement growing more and more prominent. 

“ What?” Joshua asked.

“ Is that you agreeing, Jeonghan?” Seungcheol asked. The boy in question seemed to freeze, his arms tensing up in front of him. “ You are okay with living here?”

With a huff and a shrug, Seungcheol received his answer. “ FUCK YES! Thank you, Hannie!” Seungcheol exclaimed, and hurled himself at the stubborn boy in front of him. Ecstatically, Seungcheol started to pepper kisses across the boy’s face. Joshua laughed softly behind them, as Jeonghan rolled his eyes, a coat of pink painted across his cheeks. 

“But since we are living here,” Jeonghan started. At the words, Seungcheol backed off slowly. “ We have to be stocked. I’m not living in an RV and on top of that living off of fast food restaurants. You two are going grocery shopping.” Jeonghan announced. 

“What? Why am I being punished?” Joshua asked. 

“ Is being stuck with me a punishment?” Seungcheol asked, his eyes widening into mimicking a puppy’s. 

“W-what? No! I just wanted to read today, we’re at the beach and- okay fine.” Joshua agreed. 

“ Okay, as I said, you two go shopping. I’d send only Seungcheol but he’d come back with too many items. I’d go, but I’m going to spruce this place up. Now go.” Jeonghan announced as he pretended to roll up his sleeves. 

 

And the two were off. The town they were in at the moment held markets on the boardwalk as long as it was warm enough to do so. They were a friendly bunch; welcoming the three into their town with little problems or curiosities. They were called into to look at an old museum which surprisingly did not have a ghost problem due to the ancient relics that were scattered around the building, but the building it self. Once home to a murderous family, later became a run down building with a forgotten history only to ironically be forged into a museum. The problem was solved in a more religious style than the three were used too: Prayers, exorcisms, and mantras echoing through out the halls. The three were more comfortable with using technology to get rid of them, or basic conversation - if Jeonghan ever let Joshua close to a ghost that is. 

They were successful though, and were granted a free two days in the hotel as a special gift. Jeonghan, without question accepted the gift and was planning to take advantage of their day off with an adventure to the beach. At least that was the plan.

Nevertheless, they were still welcomed with heavenly smiles in the market as they searched for food to tide them over. 

“ What should we get?” Seungcheol asked as he gazed at a tent’s array of fruit. 

“ Food.” Joshua joked. Seungcheol nudged the boy playfully. “ Okay sorry, edible food.”

“ Shua.”

“ Human edible food.”

“Joshua.”

“ The main food groups is a good way to start.”

With a sigh, Seungcheol began to talk with the market people, inquiring about the foods and the prices. Joshua wandered over to some other stands. Occasionally he’d pick a few items and hand the bags to Seungcheol only to repeat the process. That is until he spotted a child crying on a doorstep. Joshua glanced at Seungcheol before heading towards the child. Awkwardly, Joshua squatted down in front of him, and patted the shoulder of the boy.

“ Hey little man. You okay?” Joshua asked, his voice soft. In seconds the young child had his arms wrapped tightly around Joshua’s body, squeezing him tightly. Tears started soaking his chest, but it didn’t deter Joshua. Instead the older boy gently combed his fingers through the crying child’s hair. A few moments later, the boy pulled away and gazed up at his face. Tear streaks painting pictures of horror on the poor boy’s face caused Joshua to gently brush away the last few tears away. “ Where are your parents?” Joshua asked.

The boy gazed up at him, and with a stuttering breath instead asked, “ Are you like me?” 

Taken back, Joshua tilted his head and backed his body up slightly. “Wha-” Suddenly, Joshua felt himself falling to the side. The boy was no longer in his arms and he was hearing a woman’s voice scream; 

“ Stay away from this child!” Joshua pushed himself up slightly, his arms holding him up behind him.

“ I’m sorry. He was crying. I-” The woman ignored him. She grabbed the boy’s arm and pulled him down the road and into one of the houses. A loud slam echoed across the street. The market placed had become silent. Silent, except for the rush of footsteps. 

“Joshua, are you okay? What happened?” Seungcheol questioned as he helped pull the boy up. 

Joshua shook his head in bewilderment. “ I don’t know.” 

A market person, owning the stand beside them spoke up. She was a older woman, hair starting to grey wonderfully. “ They’re new here.” The woman announced.

“ Not exactly a reason to push me away.” Joshua muttered. 

“ They are easily startled. They left their other town in a hurry and well, seems like the effects of what happened back in the old place hasn’t yet warn off. They are probably lovely people.”

Joshua nodded, and gazed back at where the boy once was. It was as if his presence never left. Joshua’s heart clenched. “ Yeah, they probably are.”

Seungcheol butted in, “ What exactly did happen?” 

The older woman absentmindedly fiddled with the fruit on her stand; “ Rumor has it their house was haunted, the ghosts made their lives unbearable. Can you believe it? I think it was the husband just not liking the house and making up stories to get them to leave. The kid though seemed to have the worst time with the move. Poor thing.” 

Joshua and Seungcheol shared glances; Seungcheol asked. “ Where did they live?”

“ In a few cities north of here. Not sure of the name. If you come back later I may have it.” The woman explained, “ Can I ask why though?”

 

“ Joshua, I think I have our first job with our new RV.” Seungcheol announced.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone!
> 
> Welcome to the first note of the Paranormal Investigators story that I am so excited to have started.
> 
> I would really like to hear your opinions on the characters, story development and your theories as to what is happening etc etc. 
> 
> But most of all I just want to make sure you are all enjoying the story, because although I write for myself, I post for you guys. 
> 
> My updating schedule is horrible, but I'll try to do this every other week. 
> 
> Please continue to be yourself, and work hard (And that includes taking mental health days, and sleeping in sometimes!)
> 
> Sincerely, 
> 
> V.AY


	3. Chapter 2: Festivals

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “ So much energy from you three.” Were the first words the woman muttered. Her body then twisted to stare into Seungcheol. Automatically, Seungcheol stood up straighter, his chin higher, and his jaw tighter. The older woman eyes squinted in confusion as she stared at him. When her fingers reached for his face, Seungcheol defiantly moved back a step. Strangely so, the woman did not follow and let him move. “ Come, come. I must read you.” She announced.

The highway, empty. The sky, a perfect blue. The wind, whistling. With soft music playing form the speakers, the gentle breeze brushing through his black locks, and the knowledge of his two favorite people relaxing behind him, Seungcheol found himself at peace. One hand was on the RV’s steering wheel, while the other was hanging out the window, drumming slightly on the door. A small curve of his lips threatened to stretch farther as his body relaxed into the carseat. These were the days he loved. The kind of days he missed. Even with a restrictions- the only rule Jeonghan told him was to head in the direction of the house they learned about-, he found himself once again free. Nothing in front of him, nothing behind him, nothing stopping him. 

His foot pressed slightly against the pedal, he felt the wind brush against him faster. The hand relaxing in the wind stretched out, feeling freedom press against the fingertips. Unconsciously his fingers curled, trying to grab hold of it, the freedom fleeting. Seungcheol’s eyes narrowed at the road in front of him. So empty. No restrictions. 

His eyes moved up to the mirror; A picture of Joshua and Jeonghan at the lunch table greeted him. Joshua’s fingers typed furiously on the keyboard, Jeonghan had his arms wrapped around the studious boy. The latter’s cheek pressed against the other’s shoulders, his eyes drooping closed only to flutter open. Jeonghan’s hair was down, covering half of his face. However, Seungcheol could still see the tired eyes glancing up at the mirror too. Their gazes caught each other, held each other tight. Jeonghan smiled, and lifted a hand to push back a few strands of his hair. 

He was so beautiful; so full of a life. 

Suddenly, Jeonghan’s eyes widened. One of his arms tightened around Joshua’s shoulders dangerously tight. His other reaching out desperately for Seungcheol. His lips parted with a scream; 

“ WATCH OUT!” 

Seungcheol’s eyes snapped back to the road to see in his momentary distraction, he drove off course. The car heading for the woods. With calculated pulls on the steering wheel, his foot pushing onto the breaks, Seungcheol felt them serve. In the corner of his eye he saw Jeonghan shield Joshua. One of Joshua’s hands latched onto his laptop, the other wrapped around Jeonghan’s waist. 

The RV stopped. 

Seungcheol let out a soft sigh. His gaze now frozen on his hands, turning white on the steering wheel. The 0 MPH staring at him, mocking him. With a single breath, Seungcheol unbuckled his seatbelt and climbed out of the seat. He then rushed over to Jeonghan and Joshua. He kneeled in front of Jeonghan, slowly prying their grips off of each other. Jeonghan’s eyes were wide, tears playing in the corners. Jeonghan’s gaze glanced Seungcheol up and down before the eye brows curled in. 

Seungcheol broke the silence; “ Are you okay?”

“What were you doing?!” Jeonghan yelled. Joshua pulled himself away. His laptop now closed and pushed to the side as he gazed curiously at the other two. 

“I’m so sorry. Momentary lapse in judgement. Are you two okay?” Seungcheol apologized. His eyes still snapping back and forth between the two. 

“ Cheol, you are driving a fuckin’ vehicle. You can’t have momentary lapses in judgment.” Jeonghan groaned out, his two hands coming to squish Seungcheol’s face together. 

“ Would it be better if I said it was because I was distracted by your beauty?” Seungcheol teased, as one of his hands gently reached up to curl around Jeonghan’s. When Jeonghan did not respond, Seungcheol carefully removed a hand from his face and placed a small kiss. 

Joshua chuckled as he spotted Jeonghan’s ears slowly turn into multiple shades of pink. “We are both okay.” He added on. “Are you?”

Seungcheol switched his attention to the other boy. Joshua had a small smile set on his face. It seemed as if the moment of incoming death completely unfazed him. His eyes curving into slight crescents when Seungcheol continued to stare. 

“ I’m fine. Though, I may be a little tired.” Seungcheol admitted. 

Jeonghan spoke up, “ This is why we should have just kept the car and stayed in hotels. No more driving Seungcheol. Go in the back and rest.” 

Seungcheol opened his mouth to retort, but Joshua butted in instead; “ I’ll drive.” 

Jeonghan and Seungcheol stared at him. 

Uncomfortable Joshua asked, “ What?”

“You hate driving.” Jeonghan piped up. 

“ Yeah, but you guys have been driving for the past two days. It’s my turn.” Joshua announced. 

Seungcheol sighed and pushed himself up. Still holding onto one of Jeonghan’s hands, he leaned over the boy and pressed a small kiss onto Joshua’s forehead. “ Too good for this world.” Seungcheol whispered. 

With a small laugh Jeonghan nodded his head. “ Fine Joshua drives, under the one condition that, Seungcheol, you have to actually sleep.” 

“ I will if you come back to bed with me.” Seungcheol grinned playfully. 

Jeonghan gasped; “ You’ll leave Joshua to do something he hates by himself, just to have time alone with me? How sneaky!” 

With a roll of his eyes, Joshua kicked Jeonghan off of the lunch table bench, trying to get through. “ Just go with him. I have podcasts I can listen to.” 

Jeonghan groaned when he fell to the ground, sending an half-assed glare in Joshua’s direction. Seungcheol chuckled, and grabbed Jeonghan’s arms to haul him up. Joshua left the two to argue about which side of the bed they were to lay on, as he rummaged through his phone’s podcast selection. Joshua slid himself into the seat, readjusted the controls and when the bedroom door shut, he was off. A few hours later, Jeonghan woke up only to feel strangely static. Fluttering his eyes open, he was momentarily distracted by the angel in front of him. Seungcheol’s arm was beneath his head, his fingers naturally fiddling with the end of his hair. The other boy’s other arm had happily wrapped itself around his waist. Jeonghan’s lips curled slowly. His body melted, every muscle de-tensing, every nerve relaxing. His eyes began to flutter shut once more that is until, he realized there was not the slightest tell of the vehicle moving. Jeonghan practically felt his ears twitch as he tried to zone in on any sound possible. The tires were silent, the engine practically mute. Not a word of Joshua’s podcasts reached his ears. Instead he heard a faint rumble of conversations outside of their RV. 

Jeonghan snapped his body up. His eyes focusing in on the closed door, then switching over to the windows near the bed. He pulled a curtain to the side, blinded for only seconds. As he adjusted he noticed they were no longer on the highway, but pulled into a park of sorts. There were rows upon rows of colorful tents. Children ran to and fro. Adults swung hands through crowds of people. A ferris wheel placed in the far back. Jeonghan’s mind raced with ideas. 

In a rush, Jeonghan forced the blankets off, unintentionally drowning Seungcheol, and rushed to the door. Slamming it open he saw the front seat empty. 

“ What’s up?” Seungcheol asked, stretching his arms above his head before messing with his bed head. 

Jeonghan’s eyes quickly jumped around the room, before looking at Seungcheol. “ Where’s Joshua?” 

Seungcheol took a peek out the window before turning to Jeonghan. “ He woke me up earlier and told me he wanted to get some fresh air. We have a few more days trip before we reach the city, so I said sure.” 

“ How long ago was that?” 

Seungcheol scoffed. “ I dunno. Maybe an hour ago. I was half asleep, I didn’t look.” Still, he took a look at his phone to check the time. “ Call him if you are so worried, or go out and look for him.” 

Jeonghan already had the phone in his hand, and a jacket half way on even before Seungcheol finished speaking. The older nodded his head, in false agreement, but quickly grabbed the covers and pulled them over his head. In seconds his ankles were grabbed and Seungcheol felt himself sliding across the bed and onto the hard floor. 

“ We are going to look for him.”

Seungcheol twirled a finger in his air and muttered, “ Woo an adventure.” However he followed his tease with a bright smile for Jeonghan. 

Any anger Jeonghan harbored from the comment vanished the minute the pearly whites sparkled in front of him. 

When the two stepped out of the vehicle, the aroma of fried foods, and cotton candy wrapped itself around the two. A muttered curse of amazement left Jeonghan’s lips before he reached for Seungcheol’s hand and marched themselves off. Jeonghan’s other hand preoccupied with holding his phone to his ear. 

“ He’s not picking up.” Jeonghan grumbled. He dialed once more.

“He may be busy Hannie, hands may be filled with food. You never know.” 

Seungcheol stared helplessly at the boy. If Jeonghan sensed danger, even the slightest amount, the boy would lash out, reach out, and protect. He always reacted and voiced his opinions first when it comes to the safety of each other. Sometimes even on the most minuscule level, like this one time with some frogs. Jeonghan though, never enforced rules on them, never took away what Seungcheol loves just slightly less than the other two; freedom. There were just moments where Jeonghan’s - as Joshua calls them- ‘spidey senses’ would appear and Jeonghan would feel his whole body itching to make a change. 

When Jeonghan gets like this though, Seungcheol always become thankful and reminds himself, Jeonghan was much worse before.

At the seventh unanswered call, Jeonghan practically through the phone into the grass. Seungcheol quickly reached out and caught it before it smashed into pieces; That was not an expense he wanted to deal with. Then, in a swift motion, he slid in front of Jeonghan and wrapped an arm around the small of his back. Pressing the younger boy closer to his body, Seungcheol tilted his forehead against Jeonghan’s. 

“ Babe,” Seungcheol started. Gently he pressed his thumb against the boy’s spine, rubbing circles. “ It’s going to be okay. We are at the festival, he will come back to the RV on his own. He will call us back. He’s only been gone for an hour, two at most.” 

Seungcheol felt the muscles relax slightly under the palm of his hand. The younger boy let out a breath of fresh air. Seungcheol smiled.

The moment was broken when a soft voiced echoed in their ears. “ Uh, sorry for not picking up.” To the side of them holding funnel cake, cotton candy, and sporting a pirates hat crookedly on his head was no one other than Joshua. The boy sent the two a sheepish smile and held out the food. “ I tried to head back at your first call but I couldn't run fast with all this. I dropped a koala too.”

Jeonghan blinked, confused. “ A koala?”

“ I won it for you… but it fell somewhere. Not exactly sure where. I was gonna win one for Seungcheol, but I got the phone call and, yeah. Hi.”

Jeonghan stared at Joshua for seconds before grabbing the food, placing the funnel cake in Seungcheol’s hands and holding the cotton candy to himself. After taking a quick bite, he snagged Joshua’s wrist and pulled him into a hug.Joshua grinned, curling his arms around his boyfriend. “Spidey senses kick in?”

“ Yeah. Something like that.” Jeonghan muttered. “Anything happen?”

Joshua thought for a moment as they pulled apart; “ No.”

Seungcheol gazed between the two as he munched on the snack given to him. “ Well it’s not like the house is going anywhere, let’s go find that koala,” He offered. 

Even though Jeonghan’s shoulders still screamed tense, the two went off, with Joshua leading the pack. They found the koala bear not to far off from where they met, and luckily only slightly covered with dirt. Joshua happily picked it up and dusted it off. 

Even after picking up the koala, the three continued their little exploration; playing games, munching on food, handing all the chocolate to Joshua - only Joshua ate the stuff. For most of the time Jeonghan was still on edge, his hand reaching out slightly, to grab Seungcheol’s arm every time he went to play a random game. His fingers twitching in Joshua’s hold when the youngest would pull away to fill his curiosity. Jeonghan and Seungcheol both swear, if the boy did not have a book in his hand, he would walk anywhere and everywhere not giving a damn. However as the sun hid behind the earth’s horizon, Jeonghan relaxed. He ran around with Joshua with curiosities galore. That is until Joshua dragged them to a dog purple tent, beads hanging in small hoops around the edge.

It was there that Jeonghan’s spidey senses tingled greatly. 

Seungcheol began to walk in but Jeonghan grabbed the man’s bicep instinctually. The older man looked back curiously. “ What?” 

“ I don’t like it here.” 

In his own interest, Joshua peaked his head into the tent; It was crowded, messy. Chests upon chests. Books upon books. Lanterns placed spaciously across the room. Beads trickled down from the ceiling. In the back was an old woman, seeming to be scolding a bird, flying this way and that. Joshua chuckled softly before pulling his head back. 

“ It’s just an old lady with a bird.” 

Seungcheol glanced at it. “ It actually just looks like a fortune teller’s place. Your probably just weary of the paranormal activity here, I mean if I’m right that means she crosses path with the dead all the time. ” 

Jeonghan narrowed his eyes at Seungcheol. “ You know there is a movie called Paranormal Activity. Shit goes down in it. I am not getting busy with paranormal activity in an unknown location.”

“Your job is literally a Paranormal Investigator. We do this for a living.”

“ Once again, not getting busy with it in an Un. Known. Lo. Cation.”

“ Lo and cation aren’t two words. Lo is not a prefix.” 

Joshua fiddled with the tent’s opening flap, his eyes calculating. Jeonghan’s own gaze targeted in on Joshua. The cat eyed boy then looked up at Jeonghan once more. His lips parted to speak, but was cut off as a small breath of a scream left his mouth. One moment Joshua was there, the next second a hand snagged the boy’s wrist and dragged him into the tent, the curtain flapping in front of them. 

“Joshua!” “ Shua!” Seungcheol and Jeonghan exclaimed. The two sprinted in. As the curtain relaxed behind them, the boys stared at the scene in front of them. Joshua stood wide eyed as the old lady placed her two hands on his cheeks. She harshly moved his face around, checking every corner. Jeonghan pushed one foot forward, but Seungcheol placed an arm in front of his chest. In the corner of his eye, Jeonghan spotted the other boy’s eyes unnaturally focused. 

Suddenly the old lady spun on her heal. In three quick steps she was in front of Jeonghan. Her hands grabbing his upper arm tightly, the other one grabbing the back of the boy’s head and pushing it closer to hers. One of Seungcheol’s hand slid to hold on to Jeonghan’s when he saw it slowly curl into a fist. His other hand reached for Joshua. The boy stared blankly at the outreached palm before taking it and letting himself be pulled to Seungcheol’s side. The hand possessively wrapped itself around Joshua’s waist and held it tightly. 

“ So much energy from you three.” Were the first words the woman muttered. Her body then twisted to stare into Seungcheol. Automatically, Seungcheol stood up straighter, his chin higher, and his jaw tighter. The older woman eyes squinted in confusion as she stared at him. When her fingers reached for his face, Seungcheol defiantly moved back a step. Strangely so, the woman did not follow and let him move. “ Come, come. I must read you.” She announced.

Joshua moved to follow, but Seungcheol held him in place. Jeonghan first spoke, “ Read us?” 

The woman had walked to an old chest in the middle of the back of the tent. Her body slowly easing into a cushion placed behind it. “ It is simply my job.”

Seungcheol spoke; “ We don’t want to be read.” Jeonghan nodded in agreement. Joshua however stared at her in yearning. 

“ Seems like one of you do.” She practically purred. She poured some objects onto the table in front of her. “Besides, I must. There is information not only I crave to know, but you need to learn.” She announced, as she fiddled with some random keys that had spread across the table. 

Jeonghan pulled on Seungcheol’s hand as he took a step back towards the exit. Seungcheol tugged on Joshua, who stumbled in their direction. “ Some stuff is best left unknown.” 

“For some yes, but your quiet friend here seems to understand knowledge however strange, is power.” She noted. Her eyes narrowing at the two, threateningly so. “If you two do not wish to be read, I will happily read solely this boy’s. By himself that is, while you two stand outside.” 

At the words, Seungcheol pulled Joshua tighter against his side, the arm circling fully around his waist much like a boa-constrictor. The two skeptic males exchanged glances. Jeonghan then stared at the back of Joshua’s head. He seemed to be ready to run for the cushion in front of the chest the moment Seungcheol eased his grip. With an annoyed sigh, Jeonghan put his free hand in front of him, gesturing towards the chest. Joshua must have been watching him in the corner of his eye because his body suddenly straightened up, a foot moving towards it. 

“Splendid.” The woman cheered. The three shuffled over to the chest. Joshua was moved- by Jeonghan- to sit between the two of them. The woman watched them carefully, then grinned. She reached for Jeonghan’s hand. 

Jeonghan let her, however asked; “ Why not start with the most curious one here?” 

She looked up at him, an eyebrow raised. “ I may be old, but I’m not dumb. The minute I read your friend, you two were ready to grab him and run out of here.” 

Seungcheol and Jeonghan sent each other defeated looks, but said nothing. The next few moments were in pure silence. The woman running her hands up and down Jeonghan’s arm. Words were muttered. Cards were pulled, and and for the next part, the woman placed her hand on an orb. Her spare hand pulled out a feather, dusting it across Jeonghan’s face, all the way down to his chest. 

Jeonghan sneezed. 

The woman smiled. “May I ask your birthday?”

Jeonghan shrugged, muttering an October fourth quietly. Her grinned widened. 

“Are you Korean?”

“ Duh.”

“ Kissed by an angel.” She announced. The feather was placed onto the chest beside her. She squished his cheeks gently. “ You have been kissed by an angel.”

Jeonghan chuckled darkly. “ Yeah right.” 

In seconds, Joshua tangled his fingers with Jeonghan’s. A slight squeeze followed. 

The woman; “ Very few have been kissed by an Angel.”

“ Shouldn’t the angel protect you from I don’t know, life?” Jeonghan hissed out at her. 

The woman shook her head, her smile become somber. “ Yes. But it is not guarded by an angel which I had said, but kissed. Amazing. Purely amazing.” She responded. 

Jeonghan rolled his eyes, and swatted her fingers off of him. “ Just go to the next person.” 

The woman sighed and reluctantly sat back down. She gazed at Seungcheol. As she reached for his hand, repeating the process from before she made eye contact with him. “ You have the strangest energy coming from you. Purely mind blowing, beautiful.” 

Seungcheol watched her cautiously. “ Thanks. I think.”

Joshua stifled a giggle. 

“You know, I knew your friend was kissed by an angel purely by the energy. His energy is gorgeous, bright. But sometimes, people are just born with bright energy, you know? I wanted to make sure. I also wanted a feel for that that energy was my self.” She explained, her hands gently tracing circles into Seungcheol’s skin. “ You however, it is not kissed by an angel, that your energy reads..”

“Sorry to disappoint.” 

“ Oh honey, not a disappointment. Not in the slightest.”

Jeonghan glowered; “ Okay, no pet names here. Do your job or we leave.”

The woman rolled her eyes, and began to mutter some words. She stuttered over a few, clearly a shock to her as her eyes widened. “ Your energy-.” 

Seungcheol piped in; “ Is it just normal? Because I’m completely fine with that.”

“Hardly so young man. You’re just. Your energy is angelic, but broken. I fear the feather may break it even more.” She whispered sadly. Seungcheol eyes widened, eyebrows raised. He let out a soft chuckle. 

“ Broken? How can energy be broken?” Although his voice did not waver, Joshua looked at him with concern. His eyes opening wide like an abandoned puppy; The look that can cause anyone to do anything. 

With a regretful frown, the woman shook her head. “ I would need a more in-depth look.” She responded reaching up to grab his face. Jeonghan quickly pushed himself up onto his knees and held the woman’s forearm. 

“ That’s enough, if you can’t do the feather, move on to Joshua now.” Jeonghan ordered. The woman glared at the young man, but pulled back. For a few seconds the woman collected herself. She sat with her eyes closed, breathing through her nose. 

When the moments passed, she finally opened her eyes and stared right into Joshua’s. The boy stared back, waves of curiosity clear to anyone who gazed into those crystal gems. Jeonghan watched the lady, while Seungcheol smiled softly at Joshua. The boy was always so eager to learn, no matter how crazy the topic sounded. 

The woman gave Joshua a soft smile. “So you’re name is Joshua?” The boy in question nodded his head, politely. She nodded and began to massage her own hand. “ Can we talk, Joshua?” Her eyes zoned in on Joshua. 

“ Of course, Ma’am.” He responded, with one of his perfect smiles. She giggled. 

“ Such a well mannered boy, unlike your friends.” She noted. “ You’ve surrounded yourself with interesting people. Any reasons why?” 

Joshua’s grin widened; “ They are interesting, aren’t they? There is not one specific reason though; They’re just really special to me.” 

The woman nodded, thinking. Her eyes became more intense as she gazed at him. Jeonghan’s, on reflex, narrowed in on her more. The woman noted the action.

“ They seem to both be walking with angels by their side.” She started, “ Even though they have such bad attitudes, bad manners” The sweetness in her voice slowly vanished. 

Joshua shook his head, his smile still there. The change in voice lost to him. “ They are just concerned. It’s not everyday someone is very adamant about reading us. I hope you forgive them.” 

The woman nodded, though clearly not convinced. Finally, she reached out and wrapped her fingers around one of his wrists. She pulled it close to her, causing Joshua’s body to follow suit. One of his hands falling in front of him to brace himself against the crest. Jeonghan and Seungcheol’s bodies’ tensed up. The woman’s other hand began to trace the circles into his skin.

“ Your energy is also interesting, deary.”

Joshua tilted his head intrigued, albeit a little more weary this time. “ Yeah?”

“But it’s not as beautiful.” She continued. Joshua’s smile faltered for a brief second. Seungcheol watched it twitch and placed a hand on the back of Joshua’s shoulder. 

Joshua let out a laugh. “ That’s possible. They are both incredibly gorgeous. I’m lucky.”

The woman shook her head. “ It’s not beautiful at all.” Her grip on his wrist tightened while the other reached for the feather. She slowly brushed it against his face. Joshua’s nose scrunched up but he let it be. However as the woman moved it down, and it brushed against his lips, it curled away from him. The woman dropped the feather, and grabbed the boy’s other wrist. Joshua stared confused. Her eyes darkening. Jeonghan felt his full body grow antsy. He looked over at Seungcheol who had his eyes darkening themselves at the woman. 

“ You have been kissed.” She announced. Her grip tightening on him. Joshua flinched slightly, and that was all it took for Jeonghan to stand up from his spot. 

“ Let go of him.” Jeonghan ordered. The woman stood up to, forcing Joshua to follow suit. Seungcheol was the last to stand up, watching Joshua carefully. The boy’s eyes weren't widened in curiosity, interest. It was a rare look for him. 

The woman easily tugged the boy closer. Her voice low. “ You have been kissed, kissed by a demon. I wasn’t sure when you first walked in, but I’m positive now. If you truly love them, I advise you to leave their side. Right now” 

Although the words were soft, Jeonghan’s ears picked up on them right away. “Okay, we’re going. We’re leaving. Now.” Jeonghan proclaimed. Joshua didn’t seem to even try to move away. “Joshua, move. Now.” When the words were yet again not processed, Jeonghan gave a look to Seungcheol. 

The look, a command, Seungcheol reached over and forcefully pried the hands off of Joshua’s wrists. Seungcheol spun the boy around and guided him out of the tent. Jeonghan spun around, to glare at the woman, his hair whipping around with him. 

“ Never touch him again.” He growled. 

The woman reached out quickly. “ You’ve been kissed by an angel. It’s the only reason he has yet to break, but it can not save him.” 

Jeonghan began to walk to the end of the tent, but when he reached the curtains he took when last look back. “You’ve got it wrong. He’s the reason I have yet to break. He’s the angel who I’ve been kissed by, and you, crazy, old lady are just trying to make a buck. Stay. Away.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't get used to an update so quickly; I honestly have to update my other story before I finish chapter 3 for this one. The other fanfic readers have been waiting a month. Whoops~
> 
> Anyway, now that it is said and done, WHAT DID YOU THINK?? A lot happens in the chapter, with the Car, and the vanishing Joshua and the kissed by other worldly beings. However the main story has only just begun but it was essential for you to understand their situation more... I understand at the moment their personalities aren't completely clear, but in time. Also. It may seem Joshua centered at the moment, but trust me it will even out. 
> 
> And once again, I hope you leave comments down below because although I write for myself, in the end I post for you guys, I want to hear your feedback on the story, and your ideas on what is going on. It gives me inspiration to continue writing it!
> 
> Have a nice day!
> 
> V.AY


	4. Chapter 3: Hotel PT 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The boy bit his lip slightly, as his hand came to rest against his shoulder, his fingers choosing to tangle themselves into his hair. He closed his eyes. Memories, of desperate hands clawing out for him (Correction; at him. Jeonghan had to remind himself that he was not reaching for him, not this time) emotionless, brown eyes staring right passed him and himself whispering all of his confessions into the man in his arms, flashed behind his eyelids. Then as if hit by a train, Jeonghan’s eyes flashed open, a breath begging for air escaped.

The vehicle was quiet, Jeonghan at the wheel. Seungcheol sat at the lunch table, his back to the driver, but his eyes trained in on the bedroom. The door had yet to be closed. On the bed, was Joshua. He laid on his side, the covers shoved to the side, as he held a book in front of him. Their festival Koala then fallen over, was face down behind the boy’s head. The dying sunlight surrounded him. Most would say he was at peace, but as Seungcheol watched he noticed the boy’s fingers did not flick over a single word. Not even a page was flipped. Joshua’s eyes did not flutter. Joshua was thinking. 

Seungcheol slowly turned his head towards Jeonghan. The other was incredibly pushy about being the driver. He had practically forced Seungcheol onto the lunch table when they first entered their vehicle. Joshua had automatically grabbed a book and curled up onto the bed. He had yet to say a word. To be honest none of them had said more than a sentence to one another since the fortune teller’s tent. 

The oldest decided to break the silence; “ I think Joshua’s zoned out.” 

Jeonghan only hummed in response. 

“ How much you want to bet when he comes back to he’s going to go straight for his laptop,” Seungcheol joked, at least attempted to. An awkward smile on his face. He watched Jeonghan’s gaze flicker to the mirror to look back at him, before going back to the road. Sighing, Seungcheol continued; “ What are you thinking about Hannie?”

“What do you think?” Finally, he responded. Seungcheol counted that a win in his book. 

Seungcheol fully turned his body around in the seat, half-heartedly gazing out the front window. It was getting dark quickly. It was going to be Seungcheol’s turn soon. “ The Koala?” 

“ Yes. The Koala. That’s exactly it. Why would I think about anything else besides the koala?” Jeonghan’s voice was curt. 

Seungcheol rolled his eyes. “ Because I know you wouldn’t waste even a breath on that lady from before, am I right?”

The car swerved slightly. Jeonghan curled his hands around the wheel tighter. “ I wouldn’t waste a single thought on her.” 

It was Seungcheol’s time to hum. There was a moment of silence.

“ But if I did waste a breath,” Jeonghan started, “ It would be completely justified.” 

Seungcheol nodded. “ Yes it would be.”

“ I mean, she said Joshua’s energy wasn’t beautiful! What’s that supposed to mean? Rude. And that he was kissed by a demon? Out of everyone here, him?” 

“Incredibly rude.” Seungcheol agreed. He was about to crack a joke when there was a creaking of the bed. He swung his body around on the seat, to see Joshua sitting up straight. His eyes wide. 

“ Idea!” The boy exclaimed. In seconds the youngest was snatching his laptop from his bag and sliding into his seat at the lunch table.

“I win the bet.” Seungcheol announced. Jeonghan scoffed. 

“ We weren’t betting.”

“You mean you didn’t know we were betting.” 

Joshua ignored what was around him, and started typing furiously on his laptop. Seungcheol relaxed in his seat, calmly watched Joshua’s fingers fly from key to key. Joshua’s eyebrows furrowed, shoulders slouching. After a few minutes, Seungcheol leaned forward, took a glance at the laptop. Multiple tabs were opened on one browser, but it only took up half the screen. The other half had pictures and documents piled on top of one another. The computer cursor rapidly clicked from one page to another, copying information and dropping it onto a document page. The oldest felt his eyes grow tired just watching the youngest at work. 

“He’s hooked onto something.” Seungcheol announces. 

Jeonghan glanced back quickly. “ Josh don’t get too caught up, we are stopping soon. And you are eating food.”

“ Kisses.” Joshua responded. 

Seungcheol tilted his head, a small smirk on his lip. “ You want kisses?”

There was no reply. Seungcheol leaned over the table about to place his lips upon Joshua’s but a hand grabbed his cheeks, squishing them together. He blinked in place. 

“ No. Work.” Joshua responded. The younger then let go of his cheeks. Pouting slightly, Seungcheol pulled back.

“ I think we lost him again.” Seungcheol sighed. There was a muttering of a curse by the driver, before the car began to pull over into a parking lot. Curious, Seungcheol glanced out a window, seeing it was not what he presumed to be restaurant, but a hotel. “ Why are we here?” Seungcheol questioned.

There was no response from Jeonghan. Instead, the driver parked the car, and jumped into the back part of the vehicle. With a slam of his hands, Jeonghan arrived at the lunch table. Joshua didn’t even flinch. 

“ Joshua. Save and put the computer away.” He ordered. No response. 

Jeonghan reached over, ready to slam the laptop shut but a hand wrapped around his forearm. His eyes followed the arm to the owner. Seungcheol shook his head. “ We came to a stop, he has to put the equipment down.”

“ He just started. We can’t just stop him you know that.” Seungcheol responded calmly. 

Jeonghan bit his bottom lip and looked at Joshua again; “ What is it this time?”

Seungcheol shrugged. “Ask.”

As gently as he could Jeonghan asked; “ What’s the topic?”

“Kisses.” Joshua responded. 

“Well that explains so much.” Jeonghan groans, rolling his eyes.

“ He does not mean he wants kisses by the way.” Seungcheol noted. Jeonghan gapped at him, before letting out a tiny chuckle, followed by a muttered “dimwit”. 

The two males stared at Joshua as he typed for a few minutes before Jeonghan sighed and straightened up. “ Fine, you stay here while I go inside and get us a room.”

“Okay, sure.” Seungcheol absentmindedly responded. However when Jeonghan opened the door to the outside world, he spun around. “ Wait! Why are you getting a room? WE LIVE HERE!” His only answer was the door to the RV shutting. With a defeated sigh, the male went back to watching Joshua - who seemed to have magically grabbed a journal from thin air and was scribbling notes down. 

Meanwhile, Jeonghan strutted into the lobby of the hotel. His moves were stunted when his eyes took in the scene before him. The lobby, clearly one once of high prestige, was filled with running maids, police tape and a half of a giant broken chandelier. Jeonghan tilted his head towards the ceiling and sees the other half swaying back and forth. A man on one of the indoor balconies was reaching over the bars with a pole of sorts, seeming to try to reach it. 

Suddenly Jeonghan felt a strong gush of wind pass him, colors of black and white flashed before him. However when he followed the direction they went, he found nothing but the front desk a mere five feet away. There was a tap on his shoulder. The male unconsciously flinched but twisted his head none-the-less. An older gentleman, well in his sixties, held the most gentle of smiles. Jeonghan noted how the eyes crinkled, how his hands held out in defense as if knowing he was on edge. 

“ My apologies, sir.” The older man began. “ You seem quite lost. May I help you?”

Jeonghan softly breathed in the fresh air. He smelled smoke, but he also noticed the aroma of the sprinkler system having gone off recently. Instead of answering he glanced around the lobby once more. Maids were cleaning up the glass from the broken chandelier hurriedly. Other workers were casually redirecting customers around the mess. The front desk seemed to be struggling with an onslaught of customers. 

“ Once again, I am dearly sorry for scaring you, however if you are not here to receive assistance nor to rent a room I must ask you to leave. We do not accept loiterers nor have we permitted any journalists on the premises.” The gentleman continued. 

Nodding in understanding, Jeonghan finally turned his body fully towards the man. “ I came to rent a room, however I have some questions about your lob-,”

The older man interrupted him; “ How many people will be staying in the room? Do you want non smoking? Any requirements?”

“ Three people. Any room is fine. We are just staying the night, and non smoking please.” Jeonghan responded. He watched as the man’s lips pursed, and his eyes looked off into the distance; remembering what is available no doubt. Jeonghan took advantage of his silence and continued; “ So, what exactly happened here?”

“ We have a room on the sixth floor if it pleases you. Has two beds, but we can always bring in a cot from the third party.” 

“ Two beds are fine, one would be better actually.” Jeonghan responded, his eyes narrowing. The older gentleman’s eyes however, widened, and he turned his head letting out a soft cough.

“ Right, right. Well, we can always give you a room with one bed and-,”

Jeonghan crossed his arms, a smirk appearing on his lips. His eyes gained . His words were slow. “ Preferably a really big, soft, bouncy bed. Maybe a waterbed if you have one.” Jeonghan dreamingly looked off into the distance, purposely licking his lips slowly, “ I’d love it if it had a head board. Something I can grab-actually, can you give us a corner room. I wouldn’t want to keep anyone up.” Jeonghan’s facade broke and his eyes bore into the other man’s. “ You know how it is.”

As he spoke the older gentleman’s eyes desperately looked for something else to focus on. His cheeks dusting pink. Jeonghan, waited patiently for the man to return his attention back onto him. 

“ I can keep going, or you can start answering my questions.” Jeonghan’s voice was monotone. “I have no qualms telling people about my very adventurous, sex life. Trust me.”

The older gentlemen breathed in deeply. His eyes no longer crinkling in the corners. 

‘Success,’ Jeonghan thought.

“ There was a, uh, mishappening.” He started.

“ Clearly. There are mishappenings in the bedroom to, I have a few stories actually. Want to hear one?” Jeonghan pushed.

The older man exasperatedly dragged a hand across his face. “ That will not be necessary.” And with yet another breath, Jeonghan realized he had won. “ Our hotel has been having some strange events occur.” 

Nodding, Jeonghan then pointed to the desk; “ Walk and Talk buddy. I still need that room.” 

Reluctantly, the older gentleman began his track to the front desk. “ I’m not sure when it started, maybe it has always been a thing, but recently it’s been very noticeable. Guests complain practically daily now about something strange.”

Reaching the desk, Jeonghan asked; “ Can you be more specific?” 

As the man pushed past the crazy clients and to the computer, he responded; “ Some say they hear their door slamming at crazy hours in the night. Their lights flicker. Their stuff is misplaced. At least that’s how it started. People have been waking up with random bruises.” 

“ Sounds like you have a troublemaker as a worker. Should probably look into that.” Jeonghan noted: The story was less interesting than he thought; “ That doesn’t explain the fancy chandelier crashing into a million tiny pieces in your lobby, or well half of it anyway.” 

“Name?” The man asked; Jeonghan handed him his ID. “ We thought it was a prankster also, but all of this would happen at similar times in the night. Practically every worker would have to be doing this. That just didn’t seem plausible… and the chandelier. That, that’s the second chandelier this month. I have no idea why only one half broke though.” 

Receiving his ID back, Jeonghan tilted his head; “ So tell me, what it is you think happened?”

The older gentleman looked taken back. His eyes glanced to and fro nervously. “ Just between you and me, I think something supernatural is going on.” 

A wide grin spread across Jeonghan’s face: “ Exactly what I like to hear.”

“What?”

“Now, I have a proposition for you.” Jeonghan announced, as he reached for the room key. “ Give me the room for free, and my partners and I will look into this dilemma for you.” 

“ Excuse me?”

“ I mean if you really want me to, I can add a nice story time too.”

“Once again, that will not be necessary.” The man mumbled.

“ So the room?” Jeonghan repeated, “ Trust me, my partners and I are professionals. Look me up online, you’ll find all our credentials.” 

When the man turned to the laptop, Jeonghan quickly snatched the room key from the man’s hand. “ But don’t search to hard, you may find something you’re not ready for.” He teased.

The man’s fingers froze on top of the keyboard. 

“Kidding.” Jeonghan giggled as he walked away. “Maybe.” 

In within fifteen minutes Jeonghan had his boyfriends walking through the front doors of the hotel. When the older man glanced up from his laptop, Jeonghan made a show of stopping Seungcheol - Joshua still typing on his laptop. The playful male, wrapped an arm around Seungcheol’s neck and brought his face down closer. In seconds he had his lips pressed against Seungcheol. The oldest boy freezing slightly, before smiling softly and pressing down for only a moment. 

“What was that for?” Seungcheol asked. Jeonghan shrugged, but was quickly distracted when a hand grabbed onto his arm and spun him around. In a split of second, another pair of lips were on his own. Jeonghan wrapped his other hand around the other man’s waist, tugging him close. He felt a tip of a laptop digging into his chest, but gave it no mind. Instead, he pressed closer, nibbling at the other man’s lips. However the heavenly lips, slowly, devastatingly pulled away. 

“ I wanted to tease the guy too.” Joshua responded, nodding his head towards the older gentleman who had his face hiding behind the palm of his hands.

“ Joshua?! How’d you know?? And Jeonghan! You can’t just- what?” Seungcheol stuttered. His eyes the size of baseballs. 

“ Joshua played along.” Jeonghan retorted.

“ That means nothing. Joshua loves to tease and annoy people almost as much as you do.” Seungcheol sighed and begrudgingly walked over to the elevators. “ Don’t just use our relationship to annoy people.”

Jeonghan wrapped an arm around Seungcheol’s tightly, rubbing his head against Seungcheol’s shoulder. “ I didn’t. I used it to get a room for free.”

“ You didn’t.”

“ I did.” Jeonghan announced cheerily. “Up we go!”

In the elevator they went.

When they finally arrived in their room, Jeonghan pouted when he saw the twin beds. “ God-damnit.” He cursed.

“What?” Seungcheol asked, although his attention was on the furiously typing Joshua, who miraculously did not trip over any luggage and effortlessly curled himself up into one of the beds. 

“They aren’t water beds.” Jeonghan pouted. Seungcheol stared at him in confusion. “What?”

“Water beds?”

“Don’t worry about it.”

“Sure.” Seungcheol responded, albeit hesitantly. “ So, you ever going to tell me why we are in a hotel, and not in the RV, or is this going to be a weird secret until further notice?”

Jeonghan curled his lips in and let them out with a sassy ‘pop’, before turning to face Seungcheol. “ Well, I was thinking that we haven’t ghosted in a while, and we have had a weird day- couple of days- so why not do something we love? Plus Joshua needs a new distraction.” 

“ You wanted to sleep on an actual bed?” Seungcheol added, chuckling to himself.

Jeonghan responded with an awkward smile before continuing; “Anyway, can you guys get the equipment out for the night? I’m going to stake the place out, ask around for the most ghosty places.”

“ If you use vocabulary like that, no one is going to think you’re a professional.”

“ We came here to look for ghosty prints with our futury-phantom thingamabobs.” Joshua joked, looking up from his laptop with a toothy grin.

“ The Ghostastic-Whatsit gun.” Jeonghan added. The two exchanged toothy-grins. 

“ The dead-floating-thingy.”

“ The Scary Happening Rooms.” 

“ The ghost-killy-kill object.”

“ The BOO-Goo.”

“Actually, I like that one. Can we name Ghost-ectoplasm, boo-goo?” Joshua asked, his head looking at Seungcheol for approval. The man in question however was staring at the two, his jaw dropped slightly, his eyes having lost all hope. “Is that a no to boo-goo?”

Seungcheol shook his head as he came to reality. “ Joshua go back to being distracted. Jeonghan, do whatever it is you were going to do.” 

“Already out the door.” Jeonghan cheered with a small salute. When Seungcheol turned his attention back to Joshua, the boy was already in his typing position- Seungcheol swears that is only doing harm to the younger’s back. For the next fifteen minutes, Seungcheol unpacked their equipment. Smiling softly to himself as he pulled out some of it and found himself thinking of the names the other two would have called it. He picked up Joshua’s sample of Ghost-plasm, or he guesses now would be named Boo-goo, and fiddled with the jar slightly. 

It wasn’t something they use often- more for Joshua’s experiments and research. Though it has come in handy to compare samples and Joshua swears there is a DNA structure of some kind in relation to every type of ghost. Seungcheol tried to follow Joshua’s explanation once, and was following quite well, but then his ears stopped focusing and his eyes took the lead. Seungcheol remembers learning that Joshua talks about ghosts as if they were misunderstood relatives, and that he avoids all eye contact when describing stuff he is passionate about. Seungcheol learned that Joshua’s face is really pretty. At the same time, the oldest boy also learned that Boo-goo is helpful with identifying ghosts or something and another, and that Jeonghan finds long conversations exhausting. Seungcheol learned a lot that day. Was any of it important? 

All of it was.

Seungcheol’s memories were put to a halt when he heard another curse word reach his ears. He snapped his head up expecting Jeonghan, but it was Joshua. Joshua didn't curse, not really anyway. Maybe once every few months he would, usually when he got into a fight with Jeonghan. 

He wasn’t fighting with Jeonghan though. 

Joshua was glaring at his laptop. Seungcheol slowly stood up and moved over to Joshua. Sliding onto , his feet dangling off the edge, Seungcheol gently placed a hand on the other boy’s shoulder. “ What’s wrong?”

“ I can’t find information on that woman.” Joshua groaned. 

“ The fortune woman?” Joshua nodded. “Why were you searching for her?”

“ She said I was kissed by a devil, you guys were kissed by angels. I just needed to know why.”

Seungcheol’s face softened at the words, and he wrapped his arm around the boy’s shoulders. “ You don’t need to-,”

Joshua’s head snapped to the side, staring at Seungcheol. “ Yes. I. Do.” His words held power, but his voice was still soft.

Backtracking Seungcheol nodded. “ Why do you need to know?”

Joshua’s gaze strayed from Seungcheol’s. “ I need to know why. She says I am a danger to you guys. I need to figure out how to change it, or whatever or something.And what does being kissed even mean? I searched a threshold of websites, nothing uses “kiss”. And on top of that there is literally no information on her. Like she doesn’t exist or-,” 

“ How are you even searching for her? Do you have her name.” 

“ I did a basic search of the town we were in and the tents that were partaking in the festival. Then I narrowed it down onto the smaller tents that had themes. We only saw a fourth of the festival, you know? But yeah, there was a fortune tent, but it was owned and used by a male.”

“ Maybe it was his wife?” Seungcheol offered. Joshua shook his head.

“Checked that too. The man’s wife passed away a few years back. He works alone, and he does not have any close relatives. Besides, his tent wasn’t supposed to be up that day.” 

“ How much did you research in the last half hour?” Seungcheol teased. 

“ I have the man’s birth place hospital. That’s as far as I could go before worrying about the government feeling the need to do a tracking of us.” 

“Oh my god.” Seungcheol laughed, pulling the boy closer to his side, and kissed the crown of his head. “ I swear you are in the wrong line of work. Why did you search that far back?”

Joshua shrugged, his head falling down. “ I need to know.”

There was silence. Seungcheol gave him a heartwarming smile: Joshua always needed to know. Sometimes it gets out of hand, sometimes the information he finds is useless, but Joshua sees treasure. More information, more knowledge, less ignorance. But it keeps him up sometimes.

It keeps them all up.

“ What do you want to know the most?” Seungcheol asked.

One of Joshua’s hands reached up to his lip, toying with it slightly. “ How I was kissed by a demon. I-I…the concept makes me uncomfortable.”

Seungcheol curled his own lips in slightly, thinking. Joshua tilted his head down, staring at the screen in front of him. His heart beating having slowed down; His eyes drooped. All the words on the screen looked exhausting. Then without warning, Seungcheol snatched Joshua’s laptop away from him and placed it on the other bed. With one quick motion, Seungcheol swung a leg over Joshua’s legs, and shoved the smaller boy’s back onto the pillows. Joshua’s eyes automatically glanced at the laptop, but Seungcheol bent his body over him to block the boy’s view. 

“ I know how you got kissed by a demon.”

Joshua’s attention quickly switched. Seungcheol smirked.

“How?”

Seungcheol leaned down and placed the most sweet, gentle of kisses onto Joshua’s lips. The boy stared at the other curiously. The elder’s voice took on a makeshift vampire-esque voice.“ Twas me, I was the demon all along.” He joked. Joshua’s whole body relaxed into the sheets. Seungcheol watched his eyes focus, watched the tightened jaw relax, watched the lips curl slightly. His attention was off of the laptop, finally. 

Playing along, the smaller boy wrapped his arms around the older. “Aw hell.” Joshua laughed, his cheeks pink.

 

The moment Jeonghan had shut the door to their dorm, he leaned his back against it. The smile on his face vanishing. Slowly, he reached to the back of his neck. His fingers hesitantly touched the skin, feeling the red scratches he knew were there. He ghosted his fingers on top of them, they were practically healed. No one would see them unless you looked for them, unless you knew they were there.

The boy bit his lip slightly, as his hand came to rest against his shoulder, his fingers choosing to tangle themselves into his hair. He closed his eyes. Memories, of desperate hands clawing out for him (Correction; at him. Jeonghan had to remind himself that the boy was not reaching for him, not this time) emotionless, brown eyes staring right passed him and himself whispering all of his confessions into the man in his arms, flashed behind his eyelids. Then as if hit by a train, Jeonghan’s eyes flashed open, a breath begging for air escaped.

He focused on the wall in front of him, the sounds around him, the feeling of his cotton shirt. The sound of Seungcheol moving equipment finally traveled to his ears.Through the thin walls, Jeonghan could practically hear the typing of the keyboard. The sounds easing his shoulders down slowly. A moment of pure silence passed, before Jeonghan pushed himself away from the door. The hallways were empty. Tan walls, black doors, with an occasional framed picture was the only decoration which greeted him. There were muffled steps, but Jeonghan failed at pinpointing where exactly they came from. The sound seemed to bounced off of the walls. No matter, Jeonghan walked down a random hallway. He kept an eye on the gap under the doors.

After crossing hallways, and sliding down a stairwell’s railing, Jeonghan finally saw a light beaming from underneath a door. His feet came to a halt. Standing tall, Jeonghan looked the door up and down. The numbers 534 dangled loosely from the nails on the top of the door: The three was backwards. Pursing his lips, the male reached his hand up, curling it into a slight fist. However within centimeters from knocking, a cold breeze passed by his hand. There was the slightest pressure pushing his hand diagonally. Curious, Jeonghan let his hand fall until it hovered over the handle. A strong tingle adventured down his spine, his fingers shook.

The breeze vanished. 

Jeonghan turned the knob. 

The door opened. 

Jeonghan was not sure what he was expecting, but a well dressed, male sitting in a red chair on the other side of the room, smoking a cigar was definitely not it. The stranger glanced up at him. His eyes were a bright blue. 

“Wrong door.” The stranger spoke; his voice was deep, rich, rough. It enveloped the room. Jeonghan would have sworn the words were directly beside his ears. 

“Sorry.” Jeonghan mumbled, and closed the door slowly, his eyes never breaking their gaze. In the corner of his eyes he saw the window wasn’t open.

The man pulled the cigar away from his mouth. "Wrong man."

Jeonghan closed the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! You all are being spoiled omg. You are so lucky I've had unyielding, unrelenting inspiration and creativity to write this story. This chapter is actually much longer than this (and it's the longest chapter so far), but I decided to split it into two parts. Hope you don't mind. I'm just so excited for this section of the story! Especially next chapter. OMG.
> 
> But I do apologize, not a lot of crazy shit happens in this chapters. I swear it's coming up, slowly, but it's coming. It just has to be built correctly which is so difficult T.T Imagine this as playing a video game, but you keep going on side quests ^^;
> 
> So??? Comments? Questions? Theories? Everyone's comments have been incredible and helpful! I would love to continue to hear everyone's ideas in this and the future chapters! But don't stress yourselves out over it! Just enjoying my work is amazing in itself!
> 
> Love
> 
> V.AY


	5. Chapter 4: Hotel PT 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “ If I tell you, if you leave. You will never see your family again.” The man responded, the door and the window opening wide at the same time. “ I promise you that. I can’t promise the same for your beloveds.” 
> 
> Seungcheol covered his ears as tears escaped, and he bit his lip. His eyes never left the window, the curtains flapping and the wind breezing through his hair, comfortably. The night sky seemed so peaceful.
> 
> There was a car horn.
> 
> It could all be over.
> 
> But there was another gun shot.
> 
> “You are but a ghost of a man, Seungcheol.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNINGS: This chapter is darker than previous chapters: Read the tags. It will hint to a darker past of the characters. I did my best to leave things as open ended (which may change in future chapters) as I could due to story plot lines, and my viewer's comfort levels.   
> If you find I need to tag anything else please tell me. This is put at TEEN but my opinion of what is okay for TEEN and what is meant for a MATURE audience may be different than yours. So please tell me if you think it must change. This also has been finished at 4 am where I am, so I did not edit it. I may come back and fix that later

Through out Jeonghan’s mission to speak with the residence, he found himself having traveled from the sixth floor all the way down to the lobby. Many of them were people who were staying due to no other choice; Last minute travels, car broke down, already paid etc. Some had come specifically for the ghost rumors. Those were the people Jeonghan was most interested in. However few had actual information. They mostly heard it from news reports or friends and decided to try it out themselves.

No one did research before coming here.

When Jeonghan reached the lobby, the chandelier both on the ground and in the ceiling were gone. The older gentleman from earlier that day was not. He stood behind the front desk with his original composure. As the investigator walked over, he took one more quick glance around. The lobby was huge, the ceiling crashing through over five floors; an indoor balcony surrounded it. There were countless of luscious, blood-red chairs scattered around the room, surrounding huge oak, tables. The walls were tan, like the other floors, but had golden lines engraved into intricate designs across the tops and bottoms of the walls 

“Can I help you?” 

The words brought Jeonghan back to reality. He smiled at the older gentleman. “ Yeah I have some questions.”

The desk attendant’s eyes seemed to lose all life, but he still turned his body towards him. His arms crossing in front of his chest. A scowl appearing on his face. “ Yes?”

“ So, how much do you know about this hotel?” Jeonghan asked. 

“ I know everything that you can find on a brochure. It was built over a century ago. Refurbished about forty years ago, but all of the architecture was left alone, and the colors are all mostly the same.”

“Anything happen forty years ago to cause refurbishing?” 

“ Well a few years before it reopened there was an exchange of some sort here. People got into a fight, I thought it was mostly an act of fisticuffs or …”

Jeonghan snorted softly. 

“ What? Did I say?” The older man asked.

“Fisticuffs… only Joshua and old men use that word.”

For a moment the man looked offended before he raised an eyebrow, “ Joshua, who is Joshua?”

“ Oh? Are you curious about my personal life? Well Joshua is-,”

The man held a hand up. Jeonghan shut his mouth closed. “ Never mind.” The younger shrugged. “Any other questions?”

“ The guy in room-,”

“ We don’t give out our residence’s personal information,”

“ Just, is there someone living in room 534?” Jeonghan asked. The older man watched him carefully, analyzed him. 

“ Although I do not encourage, I actually discourage, bothering our other clients, why don’t you just knock on the door?”

Jeonghan licked his lips, nodding absentmindedly. “ I’m sort of passed the knocking part. I walked in.” 

“Walked in? Does your key work for the door? We will have to look into that…”

“No, no, no. It just opened. Maybe it was the lock. Just tell me if there is a male staying there. Please. It’s for the investigation.” 

The man moved over to his computer. “ Is he a suspect for the crimes committed in our establishment? If so this seems to be more of a case for the police than you-,”

“Just search the guy up before I decide that I’m bored and force Joshua- one of my boyfriends- down here for some entertainment while you ponder over if the police or I am more fit for the case.”

The man had the room number typed into the computer with in a mili-second. 

No one lived there.

When Jeonghan arrived back at their hotel, his two boyfriends were already unpacked. Joshua had the equipment lazily spread throughout the room. EMF meters on the beds, digital thermometers placed not the desk, recorders hanging from the coat hangers. Joshua was fiddling with a night vision camera on his lap, cornered into the back of the bed, having given away the room to the equipment. Seungcheol on the other hand had accepted his life as a table , with the wires and electronics draping across his laps, as he himself was writing notes down in his journal. 

“ So you all ready?” Jeonghan asked, his arms crossed. The two boys looked up from their work and bared their pearly whites for the world to see. Jeonghan found his cold heart melting. “Is that a yes?”

Slowly, Joshua nodded his head, clicked a couple of more buttons on the camera before giving a committal: “ Yes.”

Seungcheol tapped the pencil against his lips before shrugging. “ As ready as I will be. So how are we doing it this time?” As the oldest spoke, Jeonghan watched Joshua’s gaze graze across the collection in front of him. The long haired boy had to stifle a laugh as he watched the moment Joshua recognized the predicament he cornered himself into. The youngest’ foot sliding out a little to try to get off the bed, but every moment it touched an item it would snap back to Joshua’s body. The respect the boy had for the wired electronic toys could rival his love for his boyfriends. As Joshua contemplated his escape plan, Jeonghan turned towards Seungcheol. 

“ I was thinking we have Joshua set up the main cameras this time, and come back here. While he does that, one of us can help out by placing the thermometers around the hotel. I have a list of top locations. Seungcheol you and I can go do documentation and on location research when it hits around two thirty in the morning.” Jeonghan explained. 

With a pout Joshua looked up. He had carefully moved about half of the equipment, but was still stuck in his corner. “ But what if I wanted to walk around and use a camera all night and document?”

“Well, if Seungcheol wants to switch, you can. I just don’t want to sit around watching camera footage for a couple of hours. It’s boring.”

Joshua gasped offended. “ Seungcheol! Jeonghan is leaving me the boring job! You heard it himself.”

Chuckling softly, Seungcheol replied; “ At the museum you got mad at us for not giving the equipment enough attention. You literally re-watched over half of the footage - three hours worth- to make sure we didn’t miss anything. Even the thermo scans which we responded to on the spot, you had to check yourself. ” 

“ Well, if you guys had detailed notes than I wouldn’t need to.” Joshua’s nose crinkled. Jeonghan casually pushed away the other half of the equipment, careful to make sure none of it fell of the bed. Still, Joshua watched with slightly terror. 

“ Even if we wrote like Shakespeare, you’d still question it.” Jeonghan noted and pecked the crown of Joshua’s head. 

“ If you wrote like Shakespeare, I’d have to rewrite it into modern English so other scientists could understand it.” Joshua mumbled. 

Seungcheol barked out a loud laugh. A couple of wires sliding off of his lap. “ This is exactly what we meant, but if you really want to do location documentation I will switch with you.”

Joshua shook his head. “ Nah. I didn’t like walking around last time.”

Jeonghan gawked. “ Then why did you make a big deal out of it?”

Joshua’s smile turned into a cheshire grin. “ Because I like making life a little more difficult for you.” The boy responded before pushing himself onto his knees and pressing his lips against Jeonghan’s. “ I’ll pack up the camera stuff now and go.” 

A playful, aggravated sigh left Jeonghan’s lips as the youngest packed up all of the equipment and shimmied out of the room. “ Text us every thirty minutes so I know you are safe.” Jeonghan called out. There was a dismissive wave from Joshua as a response, before the door closed.

“I blame you.” Jeonghan announced, glaring at Seungcheol. The accused boy widened his eyes, and placed a palm against his own chest in feign astonishment. 

“ Me? For what?” Seungcheol responded.

“For teaching him to be troublesome.”

The oldest chuckled, and began to re-organize the wires for the mission. “ That was all you Jeonghan, and you know it. When you two first met all your interactions with him were pure sarcasm and passive-aggressive. Poor boy never knew what you meant.” 

“It was not!” Jeonghan exclaimed, filling up his dark pink backpack with his own equipment. 

“ What did you say to him when you first met again?” Seungcheol teased, a smirk playing on his lips. Jeonghan’s ears slowly turned pink as he began to stuff equipment into his bag a little more harsh than he intended. “ You asked him if he needed glasses, right?”

“He went to the wrong car originally!” Jeonghan retorted, “ Who the fuck does that?”

“Someone like our Joshua does that. He was distracted by his book.” Seungcheol explained, zipping up his bag. “ Besides, that still should not have been your first words to him. At least a ‘Hello’ first would have been better.”

“I said hello.” The younger muttered.

“ Actually,” As Seungcheol stood up, he shook his head. “ If I recall correctly, you didn’t say hello to him until what, the fourth time we met all together? And that was half way through lunch because you felt guilty. You just randomly said it.” The oldest started laughing at the memory. “ Joshua started choking on a milkshake - oh my god Jeonghan- he was so flustered and confused. Didn’t know a hello could fluster someone until that day.”

“At least I say Hello now, don’t I? The past is in the past.” 

“Actually. You don’t really say hello now either. It’s kind of just - Wait, what are you doing?”

As Seungcheol spoke, Jeonghan had whipped out his phone. His eyebrows were furrowed as his fingers tapped hastily. In seconds Jeonghan had the phone against his ear. Seungcheol watched silently, in confusion. 

“ Joshua?” Jeonghan asked. Seungcheol covered his mouth to try to stifle a laugh. “ No, it has not been thirty minutes. I, I actually just wanted to say Hello, so Hello.” 

There was a pause, water was starting to work up into the corner of Seungcheol’s eyes. 

“ Yeah, that was it. I agree, saying hello is a nice thing to do. Yes we should do it more often. No I am not pulling your leg- what, why are you laughing? Joshua! I call you to give you a nice damn Hello, probably the nicest Hello you have ever received and you start laughing? How the fu- fine. Yes. Goodbye. No, not hello. You’re not funny Joshua.” Jeonghan hung up. Seungcheol found himself on the ground wheezing with laughter. His face red. 

“ I blame you.” Jeonghan once again stated, side eyeing the boy on the ground. Seungcheol just shrugged in response, his shoulders still shaking as he wiped away the stray tears. “ Stop laughing. It wasn’t funny.”

Seungcheol struggled to respond. “Whatever you say.” 

Within an hour, Jeonghan and Seungcheol were spread across the hotel, placing their equipment throughout. Every fifteen minutes or so, they would text Joshua to make sure he was receiving feedback. It was a long process- Jeonghan’s least favorite part of the job- but it was the most important. As Jeonghan turned on his personal camera, he pulled out his phone and sent a message to the group:

Although already discussed the main points of interest are: Lobby, room 534, kitchen, fourth, sixth, and seventh floors. I will take the Lobby, the kitchen and the fourth floor. Seungcheol take Room534 because you’re own floor 5 anyway, floor six and floor seven. Joshua you do you. Got it?

When he received a sign of agreement from his boyfriend’s, Jeonghan slid the phone into his pocket. Sighing, the boy walked around the practically empty lobby. The front desk had a new attendee. It was a young woman, who looked a little too frazzled, a little too awake and a little too much of a mess for Jeonghan to comfortably start up a conversation with her. As a result, Jeonghan found complete boredom in the lobby. He lazily gazed at his personal thermometer and geiger counter. It was hitting two thirty in the morning. 

The information Jeonghan had gathered although lacking, gave them enough to create a relatively safe plan of action.

Most of the events that could be timed took place near the witching hour, but never on the dot. 

Although it happened on all of the floors, the three did not have enough equipment to scout out every room and floor. So they focused on the most suspicious based on suspicious, and history: Room 534 forced floor five to be a top suspect. Floor four was chosen due to Chinese culture correlating the number four to death. Floor Six chosen due to Western beliefs of the Six being related to the devil, and floor seven chosen because of it’s relation to the devil in parts of the eastern hemisphere. 

The team always made sure to have the basic numbers squared away. Floor thirteen had never existed at this hotel- something Jeonghan was thankful for. 

Aimlessly, Jeonghan slid around the lobby- Jeonghan discovered the floor to be incredibly slippery at the moment. It did not pass him that there was a probability of the floor slipperiness being due to Boo-Goo however, he was not obsessed enough to check for it until further notice.

Joshua wouldn’t know. 

Jeonghan, when he first heard of being a Paranormal Investigator, his mind raced with thoughts of movies and television shows. To be fair, Jeonghan believes everyone’s mind first goes to those as evidence of a PI’s life style: Adventurous, crazy, spiritual and insane. Jeonghan quickly learned that it’s a lot more waiting. In other words, Jeonghan’s patience has been stretched thin due to this job. 

But those moments when his watch starts spinning in rapid circles, or there is suddenly an unexplained cold breeze, Jeonghan finds himself thinking how every second of aching boredom was worth it. Every house they entered that proved to be purely aging and lacked all superstitious activity was purely paranoid housekeepers, had suddenly become worthy stepping stones to his current lifestyle. 

It seems however, every moment Jeonghan is stuck watching his clock tick normally, Jeonghan forgets of his successes. 

Tonight, though was not one of those nights.

As the clock ticked onto a little after two-forty, it froze. Jeonghan’s eyes widened. Momentarily he pondered if it was because his watch was broken, but as a cold fog wrapped itself around him Jeonghan grinned. 

“Finally!” Jeonghan cheered. As if that was a cue, the lights began to flicker. Jeonghan watched in fascination: A ghost light show is what Seungcheol called it once. Seungcheol even had the audacity to say it would be romantic under other circumstances. When Jeonghan first heard him mutter those words, he wanted to strangle the life out of him. But it was always amazing to Jeonghan. It was amazing to Joshua also. Just how did the ghosts have the ability to effect the electronics?

Joshua has been researching that for way too long. No doubt, it’ll be on his list of things to search when they fix the ghost problem. 

Jeonghan grabbed his recorder, and turned it on. He called out; “ Hello.” Jeonghan cringed at his beginning. He decides he has become to aware of that word now. “ Is anyone willing to talk?” As he spoke, Jeonghan fixed the headset on his ears, pressing it against himself harder. “My name is Jeonghan. What’s yours?” 

In the corner of his eye, Jeonghan notes the front desk lady has ran into the backroom. 

At least he won’t have an audience now.

And then the lights went out completely; the light bulbs exploding in sync. Jeonghan quickly crouched down, covering his head. His watch still had yet to move. A chill ran down his spine. His fingers twitched involuntarily. Jeonghan felt his mind go on overdrive, and he focused on taking deep breaths. With his shaky hands, he grabbed his phone, and sent a text to the others. 

Are you alright? It had asked.

But it never sent. Jeonghan tried again. It wouldn’t send. Aggravated, Jeonghan closed his eyes; “ Just have to deal with this until five and then it should be over.” Jeonghan grumbled to himself. It wouldn’t be the first time the lights went out like this.

Cautiously, he stood up. “ Hello? Does any one want to speak? I’m here to talk to you. I can tell people your story if you want.” He tried.

A chair went whizzing past his head. Jeonghan’s eyes widened, his heart skipped. His head whipped to the side to see where the chair landed, only to see nothing. Everything was still in place. 

“What?” Jeonghan mumbled. 

“It missed.” A grown male voice rumbled behind him. It was familiar; Jeonghan knew that voice, but he couldn’t place it. The voice was deep, held power, held authority. The boy spun around, only to see nothing. Jeonghan’s heart raced. Unconsciously, Jeonghan placed his hand against his chest. It struggled to push out of his chest. 

“Hello. My name is Jeonghan.” He tried once more. The room got colder. “ Who are you?”

Suddenly there was a feminine scream. Jeonghan jumped at the sound, and sprinted to the front desk. Fluidly, he pushed himself over it and into the backroom. The front desk woman sat scared in the corner, but she stared at him in confusion. 

“ Did you scream?” He asked. Her eyes were wide, and she curled into herself more, but still she shook her head. “Did you hear the scream?” Once again she shook her head. 

Jeonghan nodded absent-mindedly before backing out into the lobby. The couches were turned over, a table was cracked in half. Jeonghan stared. He hadn’t heard any of this in the back room. With hesitant steps, he moved himself farther into the middle. Suddenly another chair whizzed in front of him, but once again it vanished when the boy turned his head. 

“It missed.” The voice once again growled. 

“ Were you aiming for me?” Jeonghan asked. No response.

The sound of a car screeching caught Jeonghan’s attention. It was a familiar screech. One that caused Jeonghan’s whole body to tense up. His hairs started to stand on end. Jeonghan found it hard to swallow, as he turned towards the large doors in the front of the lobby. But they never opened. Instead the chair came flying at his face. Jeonghan dropped to the floor, with a small gasp. There was no sound of it crashing: Jeonghan did not look back this time.

“It missed.” The voice was back.

Jeonghan pinpointed the voice this time. “I’m sorry.” He found himself mumbling as if a prayer. Desperately he pushed himself up and sprinted out of the lobby. He raced to the elevator, maniacally clicking the up button. “I’m sorry.” 

The echo of footsteps reached his ears. Jeonghan could practically see the man who made the steps. The man wore boots, big boots. His jeans were stained. He wore a jean jacket. His face though, Jeonghan did not dare remember. 

There was another feminine scream; Jeonghan recognized that one too. “I’m sorry.” He mumbled, with a tearless sob. He looked up at the elevator’s descending numbers only to see they haven’t moved. Cursing the boy ran to the stairs. 

Suddenly it went quiet. Jeonghan’s hand stopped at the door for the staircase. The rooms went dead silent, but the temperature seemed to be forever dropping. He turned his head to look at the lobby once more: It was colorful. It was colorful and lively, with people in fancy dresses running around. It was colorful and lively but not a single sound was emitted from their lips. That was until there was a gun shot, and then all their screams filled the room. Jeonghan dropped to his knees and covered his ears as the guns and screaming continued. Jeonghan lifted his camera up to record the mess, but as he looked at the screen he saw only the empty lobby he was in moments ago. Still, he held it as still as he could. He was finally in contact. He couldn’t be scared now. 

“Get off the floor boy.” Jeonghan heard the male’s voice from before. Tears automatically sprung to Jeonghan’s eyes. 

“It’s not real.” Jeonghan whispered. “ Fucking ghosts are fuckin with you.” He whispered, and kept his focus on the mess in front of him in the lobby. It kept flashing back and forth between the gun shots, and the happiness. 

“I said get off the floor boy.” The voice repeated. 

Jeonghan stayed still. Suddenly a face flashed into the screen on the camera. Jeonghan let out a small scream and fell back.“ He said get off the floor. Boy.” It laughed. The camera was fumbled until it crashed onto the floor. 

“Shit, shit, shit. Joshua is going to kill me.” Jeonghan mumbled as he scooped the camera back into his arms.

“Joshua’s gonna kill you? Are you sure about that?” A voice laughed, but it was clearly in the headphones this time. Jeonghan never felt so relieved to hear a ghost. Ignoring it, Jeonghan examined the camera, and decided it was still manageable. He turned it back on. 

“ Do you want to come back, get a close up or something?” Jeonghan asked. 

“…..Can….kill…” The voice was now static in his ears. Jeonghan cursed, he was close.

“ Kill? Kill what?” Jeonghan questioned, waving the camera around to get any visual possible. As he tilted it down to towards the lobby once more, an image of a chair flying at him appeared on the screen. Confident, Jeonghan stood his ground. However, Jeonghan screeched out a cry of pain as it was forced against his stomach. Jeonghan went flying back, his back slamming into the wall. “Fuck!” Jeonghan exclaimed. He put the camera down to his side, and shoved the apparently real chair off of him. 

Meanwhile, on the fifth floor, Seungcheol walked around. He watched the timer on his phone slowly tick, but then the phone stopped. As did Seungcheol. The lights began to flicker, and it is only then that Seungcheol turned his personal night-vision camera on. The screen was empty of any people. Dissatisfied, Seungcheol walked closer to room 534. Truth be told, he was saving the room for last, but sometimes Seungcheol wouldn’t even listen to his own rules. When he was but two feet away, the door slammed open. 

“ Don’t mind if I do.” Seungcheol grinned, entering the room without a thought. Within a millisecond the door slammed behind him. Seungcheol spazzed slightly, but made no sound of fear. When he re-composed himself Seungcheol glanced around the room.

It was modeled like his own hotel room: Two twin beds, a long desk with a spinning chair, a large window to gaze out, a couple of dressers, a television and a balcony. There were a few lights, also flickering. 

Seungcheol walked closer to it. There were multiple people in the picture; fair skinned, all wearing black suits. An older man sat in a chair, smoking a pipe, placed in the middle of the photo. A fedora was tilted over half of his face. Seungcheol began to contemplate getting a fedora of his own. While he wondered about his possible success of wearing a fedora, he lifted the camera up to record the picture, zooming in on the man. As he did so, the lips of the man began to turn upward. Seungcheol stared intently, as it began a full on smile. 

And just like with Jeonghan, the lightbulbs exploded forcing Seungcheol into darkness. The boy pulled his camera back quickly, and spun around. His eyes scanning the room in a quick succession. Nothing was different. His ears picked up on the sound of the door locking.

He snapped his head to the side, staring at the closed door. 

“Welcome.” A rich voice greeted him. Seungcheol stumbled as he twisted himself around to stare at a man standing beside the window. A cigar being pressed against his lips. 

“Thank you?” Seungcheol replied, his head turning in suspicion. 

“Not you.” The voice hissed out. Seungcheol, lifted his arms up in surrender, but asked; 

“Then who?”

“ You.”

“That doesn’t make sense.” Seungcheol responded, as his hand slowly reached down to turn his voice recorder on. “ But Hi, I’m Seungcheol.” 

The well dressed man turned his head to look out the window. “ Why are you here?” It asked. Seungcheol shrugged. 

“ My boyfriend wanted to come here.” The man turned his face with disgust, his eyes narrowing.

“Boyfriend?”

“ Hey, I don’t want to hear judgment from you. You’re dead, I’m just gay.” Seungcheol narrowed his eyes right back. 

The man chuckled. “ You’re not dead you say.”

Seungcheol puffs out his chest, and fist bumps it twice. “ Yeah, I’m a live, I’d say.” 

The strangeness of this conversation only slightly lost to Seungcheol.

“You have one foot already in the grave is what you are.” The man responded, as he took a puff of his cigar.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“ You’re supposed to be like me is what I’m trying to say.” The man hissed out.

Seungcheol groaned. “ Riddles just go right over my head. I know ghosts are supposed to be cryptical and interesting and shit but I can’t help you if you don’t just straight out and tell me,”

“ Spoken to ghosts before?”

“All the time.”

“Ever wondered why?”

“My mom says I’m special.” Seungcheol jokes, but suddenly his mind registers the situation. “ And I’m using it to my advantage. Who are you.”

The man sighed, and dropped his cigar to the ground. It puffed into nothingness as it hit the carpet. As if it took all his energy to do so, the man began to walk to Seungcheol. The latter hesitantly took steps back. “ You can call me Gambino.” 

“Alright Gambino. Can you tell me what happened here?” Seungcheol asked, trying to heed his steps, letting the male stop a foot away from him. 

“ I could. Oh I could.” The man chuckled. “But your boy upstairs is already on his way to figuring this all out, and I have more pressing matters to attend to.”Seungcheol’s eyes twitched at the mention of Joshua. “What matters?”

“You.”“Me?”

The man nodded, “ Your mother? You say she says you are special.”

“That, that was a joke.”“Why was it a joke?”“What? Because it was supposed to be funny? I dunno. Because…”

“Because it’s not possible?” The man inquires, an eyebrow raising.“What? Excuse you but it is completely possible I-,”  
“But your mom wouldn’t be able to say it.”“What, wait.”

“Neither would your dad for that matter.”Seungcheol felt a shiver slither it’s way down his spine. The room becoming below freezing. “ How do you,”

“ Do you joke because you wish to hear it even once?”  
Seungcheol gulped.

“ I can fix that for you.” The man announced, but his voice was low, soft, inviting. He held a hand out grabbing Seungcheol’s.With a gust of the wind, the door and the window blew open. “ But I can’t make the choice for you.”   
There was a honking of a car horn. It was a honked three times, and suddenly Seungcheol felt his body weaken. His gaze traveled to the open window. The young boy slowly made his way passed the man and gazed out the window. In the practically empty parking lot was an old red RV. There was a man and a woman standing outside of it. The woman had long black hair pulled into a pony tail, while the man beside her was tall, filled with muscle and held a childish smile. He waved at Seungcheol, and as Seungcheol bashfully waved back, the two adults down below seemed to become overjoyed. Seungcheol felt tears prickle in the corner of his eyes. He sniffled. The door to the balcony opened and Seungcheol, in a trance walked out. 

“Seungcheol ah! Let’s go on a trip!” The older man near the car had called out. 

“Dad.” Seungcheol whispered to himself. The man, as if he could hear him, nodded. “ Dad!” He exclaimed, reaching over the bars of the balcony. 

“ We’ve been waiting for you.” The woman yelled up. 

“Mom!” He desperately called out.

“Come down here, come on quick! Before your dad leaves us here!” Seungcheol’s mother calls up. The man giddily, playfully pushes the female to the side. The woman barked out a laugh. He hasn’t felt his heart fill with warmth so quickly in so long.

Seungcheol knew if Jeonghan heard that laugh, he would point out that Seungcheol had the same one. He sure wishes he did. 

His fingers tightened on the rails, pulling himself up slightly. Seungcheol’s gaze met with the ground: he felt dizzy. Wanting the feeling of being grounded, he looked back at his parents. They were so patient.

But even so, his eyes watched them carefully; Their smiles, they were so filled with life. Their eyes never strayed away from him. Their voices were so soothing.

Oh, how Seungcheol craved to hear those voices.

The voices that once were storytellers, and comedians. Voices that had the power to destroy his nightmares, and held the power to create new worlds. Voices that promised to stay by his side. 

But recently, when Seungcheol remembered those voices, he remembered them screaming for safety, and god and prayers. He remembered the feminine voice shuddering, and giving him instructions if things “ took a turn for the worse”. He remembered the voices being drowned out by strangers trying to grab his attention.

The voices, Seungcheol declares, were not real. 

 

Suddenly a gunshot rang out. It was distant, but still rang clear in the room. It awoke Seungcheol from his trance, and he spun around. Seungcheol sprinted towards the door, that closed while he was watching his parents. He twisted the knob. It didn’t open.

“Not yet.” The man growled. “Dio Mio. None of you have patience.” 

“Where did that gunshot come from?” Seungcheol asked. His shoulders rose, his nails cutting deep into his palms, as he marched up to challenge the man. “ Where did that gunshot come from, or god so help me.”

“What, you going to kill me?” The man asked, a smirk appearing on his lips. “ That happened forty years ago. You’re a little late. Besides, I am on quite a lot of lists. You’d have to wait your turn.” 

“ Just tell me where the fuck that gunshot came from.” 

Another gun shot rang through the walls. There was a choir of screaming.

“ Tell me why you aren’t dead, and it’s a fair deal.” 

“Because I never died.” Seungcheol groaned, his hand shaking. “ I’m a live. That’s just how it is.” 

“ But you aren’t supposed to be.” The man responded, and wrapped his fingers around Seungcheol’s neck. He squeezed it slightly. Seungcheol gasped, and pulled on the arm, dropping the camera. “You have something that doesn’t belong to you. Give it back. If you do, oh I can have you with your family again.”

Seungcheol stood his ground, his head shaking rapidly, his headphones having fallen unto his shoulders at some point shook on his neck. “ No.” 

“You can travel with them again.”

Seungcheol felt a tear slide down his cheek. “ No you can’t.”

“I can make you be with them forever.”

“Shut up.”

“ You won’t ever have to know, why you were the one who survived. It’ll be over. You’ll be happy.” 

“I,” Seungcheol glanced back at the window. He could hear the honking once again. He could almost feel his mother’s arms wrapping around him tightly. “I,”

The man moved closer. “ Why aren’t you dead.” 

“I don’t know.” Seungcheol cried out, weakly. His hand reached back behind him, twisting the knob pathetically. 

“ Don’t you want to see your family again?”

“ I do. I really do but I, please. Please just, where was that, are they okay?”

“Your family is fine, they are just outside. You saw that.”

“No, my boyfriends. Did they get shot?”

Another gun shot. Seungcheol felt a lump get stuck in his throat and he crouched down. 

“ If I tell you, if you leave. You will never see your family again.” The man responded, the door and the window opening wide at the same time. “ I promise you that. I can’t promise the same for your beloveds.” 

Seungcheol covered his ears as tears escaped, and he bit his lip. His eyes never left the window, the curtains flapping and the wind breezing through his hair, comfortably. The night sky seemed so peaceful.

There was a car horn.

It could all be over.

But there was another gun shot.

“You are but a ghost of a man, Seungcheol.” The man sneered. Seungcheol ran out.

Joshua on the other hand was in the room. Three computers spread out in front of him on the bed. He made sure to make room for himself to move around. He refused to cage himself up into a corner once again. One of the computer screens had the footage from all of the still cameras set up around the hotels, with heat detection levels displayed below each camera. The second computer had a internet browser up, with over eleven tabs open. A document on the left of the screen, already filled with research and video notes. On the last computer was the group chat messaging system up, with his hacking screen for the hotel: He had to get the information somehow. 

As he researched he figured out the history of the building. This was always his job if the destination’s people did not have a clear history of the location. Jeonghan and Seungcheol usually took over interacting with ghosts. Joshua could count on one hand the amount of times he was on location documenting the situation. The most recent being at the museum. 

It was fun, but the priests did not appreciate his questions or his curiosity. They seemed to like him in the beginning, called him a good church boy, but once again Joshua felt he had imposed too much on them. Usually the boy wouldn’t worry about doing such a thing, due to the fact that when he needed information, he needed it. He couldn’t let other people’s perception of him effect his knowledge. When it came to work though, he learned that sometimes working on another person’s pace, using their methods was for the best.

Even if it was a completely secretive method that the masters refused to teach him. 

No matter, Joshua had fun, even if he was sick at the time. 

The information he found on the location was fascinating to Joshua, so while he watched the camera footage, he went on a rampage on multiple websites:

The hotel used to be a gambling, casino of sorts. It was very wealthy, and let top clients stay over night on the top floors. Most of the rooms were made for various activities, and had themes or missions. The common room was the main gambling hall. It was run by a stray son of the Gambino Mafia. What was fascinating about the place was that everyone who worked there, and participated in the casino had a clear understanding of the rules placed amongst them. Everyone held respect for one another, and held love for the casino. Those who worked there found the utmost heartwarming hospitality there, those who were top clients but found themselves in some trouble had freedom to stay there. It was a haven for those who were trusted.

But one day it was not a haven, but a blood bath. The stray son had betrayed his family name it seems. Had not shared the wealth with the family. He was a traitor to the family, so a traitor to his name. As a result the Gambino Mafia stormed in one night and shot the place down. The story goes even the clients tried to hold their own; protecting their haven.

It was bought by someone new a few years later and made into a hotel. 

Who bought it? That was Joshua’s current mission as he searched the internet.

However in the corner of his eye, the boy spotted a camera go static. He stared at it for a moment until it went back to normal. Shrugging, Joshua went back to research. 

A book fell off the bed beside him. Without a glance, Joshua bent over, picked it up and placed it back where it was. A second passed before it fell down once again, pages flipping over. Annoyed, Joshua looked over at it, but his eyes widened at what he saw.

The white pages once filled with elegant words were completely blank. Joshua slid off the bed and picked up the book. He flipped through all of the pages only to find they were also completely white. The boy quickly reached for another book, only to find the same thing happening in that one.

And the next one. And the next.

A ragged breath escaped him, as he sat himself back on the bed. His eyes glanced at the under part of the bed, and childishly lifted his bare-feet onto the bed with him. Suddenly the lights began to flicker. Joshua curled into himself tighter, and watched the lamp beside him turn off. The boy then reached over and unscrewed the light bulb, setting it softly on the other bed. Silently, he stared at it. He was waiting for something but he was not sure what.

Then another camera screen turned to static. Joshua’s head whipped around. The thermal stats were through the roof, before saying there was nothing. Joshua widened his eyes and began to take notes. As he wrote, he spotted the lights in the hallway had gone off too. He stared at it curiously, but the sudden wave of cameras turning into static caught his attention. He moved his head to look at the group chat. Reaching his hands out to type a message, a tiny scream left his lips. The glow of the laptop highlighted the red scratch marks up and down his arms. Joshua hands began to shake as he twisted them to and fro in front of himself. Unsure, Joshua ran a hand down his arms. The scratches were real. 

They hurt. 

Even so, he went back to typing a message: Right when he began to type the computer went black. 

“Oh my god.” Joshua mumbled. 

Suddenly, Joshua heard a gun shot. Joshua jumped up from the bed in seconds. 

The light bulb shattered into million of pieces, the glass flying in all directions. Joshua felt a few pieces scrape his skin, but it didn’t stop him as he sprinted out the door. 

Another gun shot.

“Seungcheol.” Joshua called out. “Jeonghan!” 

As the boy sprinted through the hallways, doors began to slam open and closed, repeatedly. He tried to scream over the loud noise. 

There were screams. He shuddered a breath. Everything was so loud.

“Guys! Where are you?!” Joshua screamed. He sprinted down a stair case, running on the fifth floor. He spotted the door Seungcheol was in. He tugged on the handle but it wouldn’t open. “Seungcheol! Are you there?! Can you hear me? Seungcheol!”

He desperately banged against the door. “Seungcheol open up please?! Are you okay?! Seungcheol!” Tears poured out like a waterfall. 

Another gun shot.

Joshua took out his phone, staring at it, and holding down on the power button. “Please, don’t leave me alone here.” Joshua whispered. “Please, please. Please for the love of-, just, at least let me know they are okay.” Joshua pleaded towards the phone. 

The door opened in front of him. Joshua’s eyes widened as he saw Seungcheol crouched down on his ground, shivering.

Another gun shot. 

“Seungcheol.” Joshua whispered. As if the words were magic, Seungcheol stood up and sprinted out, crashing into Joshua. Stumbling back, the younger boy caught him. Joshua wrapped his arms around the older boy’s waist tightly. Seungcheol had his own arms pressed against Joshua’s shoulders like a life line. “Seungcheol, where’s Jeonghan?”

The staircase down the hallway slammed open. Jeonghan dragging his body through it right as the youngest spoke. Joshua turned his head towards the sound, and felt his legs begin to turn into jelly. He lightened his grip on the boy and began to twist his body to the other boy but felt resistance. Seungcheol had tightened his grip, his fingers digging into Joshua’s arms. 

“I love you so much.”

“ I love you too.” Joshua reached an arm out to Jeonghan. “But Hannie, are you-,” 

Jeonghan was already sprinting down the hallway, and had his arms out ready to engulf them in a hug by the time he reached them. Jeonghan’s grip was just as tight if not more than Seungcheol’s when he had them in his arms. 

Joshua found the hallways had changed back, quiet. The gun shots had stopped.

“I love you two, so, so much.” Seungcheol whispered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is incredibly long omg. About 7000 words, 13 pages. This was supposed to be part of Chapter 3, but I thought it was too long, so I made it two chapters. Contemplated splitting this one up too, but it didn't seem fair. A lot of shit happened. I feel bad though, it's not my best chapter.
> 
> Speaking of a lot of stuff happened, what do you think? What's going on with Jeonghan? What about Seungcheol? Joshua? Why is Seungcheol " But a ghost of a man"? What do you think of the story?
> 
> I love reading comments, because although I write for myself, I post for you guys. 
> 
> However I should warn, it may be a week or more until the next chapter. While where I am from I don't have finals for a little bit, I do have a lot of stuff I have to take care of here. That being said, those who do have finals coming up, GOOD LUCK! Take it one step at a time and remember.... LOTS OF WATER ! WATER IS YOUR FRIEND!


	6. Chapter 5: Hotel PT 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Let the fuck go Joshua or I will-,” Seungcheol threatened. 
> 
> Joshua shook his head, and pressed a gentle kiss against Seungcheol’s heated neck. “ I can’t Seungcheol.” Joshua whispered. The words failed to stop the taller boy from kicking and thrashing in Joshua’s hold. “I Love you so much Seungcheol. I can’t.”
> 
> Trying to calm himself, Joshua breathed in deeply. It was too much. Too much sound, too many voices, too many things. Seungcheol’s threats took over his mind, Jeonghan’s cries squeezed at his heart. He couldn’t think. He couldn’t process. He felt his hands slipping when there was another sound of screeching tires.

It was 5:00 AM

It was five in the morning and Joshua found himself staring at Jeonghan’s black eyelashes. Jeonghan’s eyes were closed, asleep, like Joshua should have been. It was the plan when they made it back to the room; They were to sleep, wake up for breakfast and have Jeonghan use his charm to get them to stay another night: They had yet to fix the ghost problem. 

The three of them had skipped the shower, including the ever pampered Jeonghan. Joshua didn’t mind though. When they had entered the room, Seungcheol’s whispers of affections were then mumbled to the bed in the corner. Impatient, yet still careful, Seungcheol had moved all of Joshua’s stuff over. Joshua tried to warn about the cracked glass, but it seemed the other two were in their own world. Then, without another word, Seungcheol had grabbed Joshua and Jeonghan, pulling them onto the bed.

And there they laid. Seungcheol had placed himself in the middle, there weren’t any complaints. Jeonghan curled up beside him, his back against the wall, and his head pressed against Seungcheol’s chest. Automatically, Seungcheol nuzzled his nose into Jeonghan’s hair. Unlike Jeonghan, Joshua took his time sliding into bed. He slept with his back towards the open air. Gently, the youngest placed a hand on Seungcheol’s chest, and laid his head on Seungcheol’s outstretched arm. As if it was natural, Seungcheol’s arm bent and Joshua felt fingers curling themselves within his hair. 

There was a half-conscious confession of love from the oldest, a confirmation from the second, and an agreement from the youngest. The words acting as a spell, they fell asleep. All of them but one, actually. 

Joshua had spent the next hour watching the rise and fall of Seungcheol’s chest. He counted the tear stains on Jeonghan’s cheeks. He concentrated on the beating of Seungcheol’s heart. 

It was so loud when they were in the hallway. 

Joshua could not remember ever seeing Seungcheol’s eyes so lost. Sometimes he looked like a kicked puppy, occasionally disappointed and very rarely sad. He never actually looked lost, like he was out of ideas, out of choices, he was back into a corner which he couldn’t find. The scariest part, was his eyes also screamed he was defeated, that he had given up. Through out the night Joshua wondered why. 

Jeonghan had been so quiet when they hugged. Jeonghan had fingers digging into their skin, pushing them together, closer, and closer, and closer. The beautiful male’s eyes weren’t lost though. Joshua saw confusion, and fear. This look was not new though. 

Years ago Seungcheol and Joshua agreed to strive to never make that boy have that look ever again. 

Joshua spent the night wondering what they did wrong. 

What happened to everyone?

Joshua spent a lot of time staring at his own arms. It was dark, but he could still see the red marks. The older males had yet to see them, and Joshua prayed they would be gone in the morning. He wasn’t supposed to be doing that anymore.

Joshua felt the fingers on Seungcheol’s chest twitch. The next second Joshua’s other arm momentarily flexed. His toes curled, and his heart started to pound against his chest. Silently, Joshua stressed that his heart was pushing against Seungcheol’s chest, that it would wake the older up. His leg twitched. Joshua bit his lip. And then, his mind began to race. 

What happened to Seungcheol? What happened to Jeonghan? Are they safe to sleep tonight? Why were they targeted tonight? What were the gun shots? Did anyone else hear them? Have people left reviews online? 

With that thought, Joshua twisted his body around slightly to look at the computer on the other bed. He slowly pushed himself up and slipped a leg over the side when he was stopped by a deathly grip on his wrist. Quietly gasping, Joshua’s head snapped back to his boyfriends. His eyes made contacts with Jeonghan’s, a challenging gaze. The older’s fingers were wrapped tightly around his wrist and tugged harshly. Joshua braced himself so he wouldn’t fall onto Seungcheol. 

The latter let out a soft sigh. 

Joshua watched the oldest carefully. Only when he was sure he didn’t wake up, Joshua glanced back at Jeonghan. The boyfriend had his eyes fixed on Joshua. Awkwardly, Joshua waved with his captured hand. 

“ Jeonghan?” Joshua asked, his voice barely above a whisper. 

“ I don’t give a single fuck how obsessive you are feeling right now, you do not leave this bed. You do not leave Seungcheol’s side.” Jeonghan threatened. 

“ But Jeonghan, I-,”

“No buts.” Jeonghan hissed out, however he lightened his grip. “ You can’t distract yourself tonight. Stay with us, sleep.” Joshua felt a soft finger gently petting the scars on his arm. The youngest’s own fingers curled in. 

“ I can’t sleep.” Joshua mumbled. Jeonghan’s eyes lost their fire.

His eyes were gentle, and with the softest tug, the older brought the younger’s wrist to his lips. “Please just sleep tonight, Joshua.” Jeonghan pressed his soft lips against the scratches. “ Research in the morning.” 

“But the ghosts,”

“They’re dead Joshua. They aren’t going anywhere.” Jeonghan’s voice had tired. 

“I-,”

“Please, Shua. Please.” 

Obediently, Joshua curled himself back into Seungcheol’s side. The fingers on his wrist slid away until they curled with his own. Seungcheol’s arm had wrapped itself around Joshua’s shoulder, holding him tightly to his side. There was the faintest kiss pressed against his temple.

Joshua fell asleep. 

The morning was chaos. They woke up at ten, and Jeonghan had ordered the two to stay in bed. For good measure, Jeonghan grabbed the laptop on his way out of the room. There was a slight whine from Joshua, but Jeonghan trusted Seungcheol to distract the youngest.

The old gentleman was once again behind the desk. His bright demeanor changing the moment he was face to face with Jeonghan. Happy smiles turned into angry frowns, and blazing eyes. Casually, Jeonghan placed the computer on the front desk and leaned against the desk’s walls, grabbing the stapler as he did so. 

“Goooood morning.” Jeonghan sang. The boy found his voice cracking slightly, and his throat sore. 

“What in the world were you doing last night?!” The older man exclaimed. Jeonghan shrugged.

“ Having wild sex, can’t you tell?” Jeonghan asked, using his hand to emphasize his look; his hair was still slightly tangled, he was wearing the clothes from yesterday and did not even give himself time to check if any of the clothes looked awry. 

The older man was not amused. “ There were gun shots last night! Why were there gun shots?”

Nodding in understanding, Jeonghan lifted a hand for him to stop. “ See, that was the ghosts. You seemed to have a huge ghost problem last night, and while you got to go home and have the night sleep that hard workers deserve, ignoring what ever was happening in your lobby, we were being haunted.”

Silence.

“ My boyfriends’ and I are exhausted, but we made a deal. Give us one more night. You made it seem like this was an easy case, I thought we only needed one day, but you seem to have been skimping on the details. We will fix it I swear. I just need the room one more night.”

“Why should I trust you.” The older man glared.

A frustrated huff escaped Jeonghan’s lips, and he reached forward, grabbing the man’s red tie. “ You don’t have to, but you said there were gun shots, and honestly those could have been from me. If you want to risk figuring out if they were really from me, then please, reject my offer. I mean you could also live with ghosts this whole time.”

He freed the tie. 

The older gentleman coughed, and turned to the computer. As he typed, Jeonghan continued to fiddle with the stapler. 

“ Alright, I have you for the same room, but only for one more night.” The man announced. 

“Fantastic, do we get complimentary breakfast?” Jeonghan asked, his head tilted, his eyes wide. The man’s own eyes widened in disbelief. 

“ You are not a paying customer, so I am afraid not.”

“Aaaw come on. I can’t work on an empty stomach.” Jeonghan whined. 

Suddenly, there was a new voice. “ We always make too much food, please join us for breakfast.” 

Jeonghan spun around only to see a man, much taller than himself. The man had tan skin, a childish smile, and sparkling eyes. Noticing the attention, the male leaned over to lay against the front desk. Instead he found himself tumbling beside the desk, finding himself just a few inches away from his destination. 

“Man.” The new man whined. 

“Are you okay Mingyu?” The older gentlemen asked. With a laugh, Mingyu nodded. 

“ Completely okay.” He responded, and pushed himself up. Jeonghan chuckled. “ But seriously, please join us for breakfast. We have plenty.” 

Jeonghan pretended to contemplate the offer. As he did so, Mingyu’s lips twisted into a pout.

“Please? It would be an honor to have someone so pretty trying my food.” Mingyu added. In a second, Jeonghan’s ears fluttered through shades of pink.

“Excuse me?” Jeonghan asked.

There was a groan from the front desk. Both of the younger males ignored it. 

“ Pretty person trying my food? I did say pretty right?” Mingyu started bouncing on his heels, and his head whipped around to look at the front desk man. “ I did say pretty right? Not anything stupid right?”

Entertained, Jeonghan barked out a laugh. “ Oh man, you did say pretty. Don’t worry. You know I’m a dude right?”

Mingyu’s head tilted to the side, his eyes narrowing in confusion. “ Of course I know, boy or girl, you are gorgeous.”

Slightly taken back, Jeonghan nodded. Himself, now confused. When his lips opened to respond, there was an echo of rapid footsteps. Within seconds brown hair had made it’s way between Mingyu and Jeonghan. A wild hand was reaching for the laptop. 

“Joshua!” Someone exclaimed. Jeonghan’s lips curled into an amused smile, and grabbed the reaching arm pulling it against his chest. The grabbed boy stopped in place, and turned his attention to Jeonghan.

“Hey there,” Jeonghan started, and quickly glanced up at the shocked face of Mingyu. “ Babe.” And with that word Mingyu’s face twisted into horror. The tall male suddenly sputtered nonsense, his hands flying up as if he it would help speak. 

Seungcheol ran up, and snatched the laptop from the desk. “ Hannie, sorry. We were talking and then he got an idea and I don’t know. He just ran. Who’s this?”

Mingyu’s face slowly turned beat red, his words morphing into gibberish. “ I, um. I’m you know, I’m the chef.”

Joshua fully turned around to face the tallest male, and leaned his back against Jeonghan. Happily, Jeonghan wrapped his arms around the younger’s waist. “ How long have you been cooking?”

“ My whole life,” Mingyu announced proudly. 

Seungcheol nodded and then faced Jeonghan. “ Okay but why is he here and not in the kitchen?”

“You know if he was a girl, that would be sexist.” Joshua noted. At Seungcheol’s millisecond sneer, Joshua laughed. 

Jeonghan began to rock Joshua and himself back and forth. “ His name is Mingyu. And he thinks I’m gorgeous.” 

Joshua watched as new shades of red appeared on the tall man’s skin. Once again the stutters appeared. Not even the language of nonsense seemed to be possible for the young man. 

In an instant, Seungcheol’s arm was wrapped around Jeonghan’s waist. A sly smirk sneaked on to Jeonghan’s face.   
“That’s not, I mean yes, that is what I said. But like, that’s not. I didn’t. Boyfriend. Not me. Sorry, I mean.” Mingyu explained. 

Yet another new voice was added to the discussion; “ Mingyu, when you said Hot I thought you meant the kitchen and you were going to the freezer, not to the front desk to pick up some stranger.” 

“You think I’m hot?” Jeonghan teased.

“BAD TIMING WONWOO!” Mingyu exclaimed, his hands waving around frantically. The new male, Wonwoo had black, soft looking, bangs. A neutral expression seemingly permanent on his face as he strolled over. 

“Hello, I am Wonwoo. A Baker. I am sorry about my colleague Mingyu.” Wonwoo apologized. 

“Name is Wonwoo A. Baker?” Joshua asked.

“No, I’m a Baker.”

“ Baker is a famous family name then? ” Joshua questioned. Already exhausted, Wonwoo made eye contact with Jeonghan. 

Jeonghan winked, conveying he will indeed help. “ No Joshua. He has a job as a Baker”

Wonwoo softly smiled, but then Jeonghan continued; “ He doesn’t seem to have a last name.” 

There was an exasperated sigh from Seungcheol on the side.

“Oh my goodness! No last name? I should have been more sensitive about that!” Joshua exclaimed, covering his mouth in shock. “ Wonwoo I am so sorry. I didn’t know. Please forgive me.”

“I have a last name. It’s Jeon.” Wonwoo responded, his shoulder sagging as if he has accepted his new life style.

“Jeon?! Jeonghan! Did you hear that? He has a last name.” Joshua announced.

“So he just lied to us?!” Jeonghan decreed. The two insulted boys turn their heads away from the newcomers.“ I am insulted. We do not talk with liars!”

Mingyu began to bounce on his heels again. “ Wonwoo! The pretty person is mad, fix this.” His voice, supposed to be a whisper, echoed through the halls. 

“You’re making the tall one nervous, cut this short.” Seungcheol suggested. The two in question side eyed each other before putting on their brightest grin, and holding out their right hands. 

“ I’m Joshua Hong.” 

“I’m Yoon Jeonghan.”

Seungcheol followed their lead, and although reluctantly, took his right hand away from Jeonghan’s waist to hold it out. “ I’m Choi Seungcheol. Nice to meet you two.”

Mingyu eagerly shook every and each hand with vigor, while Wonwoo took his time. 

“Kim Mingyu. Sorry about earlier.” Mingyu announced.

“ Jeon Wonwoo, not sorry, currently confused.”

“Long Last names.”Joshua mumbled. 

“Don’t you dare start.” Wonwoo threatened. Joshua instead emitted a chuckle.  
And conversation ensued. The boyfriends were guided back to the dining room, where trays upon trays were set up waiting for hungry customers. Mingyu had offered to cook specialties, but before he could finish his offer Jeonghan was already stacking food onto a plate. Seungcheol on the other hand practically had three plates filled and set at a table by the time Mingyu had said the first syllable. Mingyu followed excitedly. Meanwhile, Wonwoo and Joshua walked in peaceful silence to the food. 

Mingyu, Jeonghan and Seungcheol had dived into in-depth discussion of the most random topics: Cooking, trains, and physics - although only Seungcheol seemed to know what he was talking about with the last topic. Jeonghan made up gibberish, impressing Mingyu until the tallest boy finally realized what was going on.

The realization happened when Jeonghan repeated a “scientific word” only for it to be pronounced completely different.

Joshua and Wonwoo spoke about books, history, the world. Their earlier engagement forgotten as Joshua sneakily snatched his laptop and showed off his technology. As he showed off the tech though, the conversation slowly started to morph. 

“ So, have you seen any ghosts here?” Joshua asked. Wonwoo shrugged, clicking random stuff on the laptop, careful not to ruin anything. 

“ I never know really. Things go missing, but then it’s usually because Mingyu dropped something and didn’t want to tell me until he fixed it. I come in early in the morning to start of the baking and usually am one of the last to leave, but I don’t stay over night.” 

Joshua nodded, bringing up a few new applications. Wonwoo began to fiddle around with those. “Okay, but you don’t have a strange feeling or anything?”

“Strange feeling?”

“Like there may be ghosts here?”

“What is that supposed to feel like?”

Joshua shrugged. “ I don’t know, just a huge need to run?”

“I get that feeling every time I work with Mingyu.” Wonwoo joked.

Joshua chuckled. “ That often, huh?”

Wonwoo glanced at the manically speaking, tall boy. His eyes softening. “ Yeah.” They hardened once more when he gazed at the computer. “ It’s a nightmare.”

“I bet.” The softening of the eyes was not losses to Joshua. “Anyway, do you know who bought this place?” 

“ Nah, it is under an anonymous buyer. Don’t really care as long as I get my money.” 

“Yeah, money tends to take priority.” The conversation was at a dead end. 

Wonwoo poked at Joshua’s arm. “ So what happened there?”

Joshua glanced at his arm and gave the other a toothy grin. “ Fight with a tiger.”

“ A tiger?”

“Yeah, he was huge. Crazy really. Didn’t think I’d see a tiger in a hotel, but there I was, face to face with one. You should have your management team look for it… I lost it after the fight. He was pretty embarrassed.” 

The statement created a bubbling chuckle erupt from the quiet boy’s mouth.   
“ Doesn’t he look nice when he smiles?”Mingyu suddenly asked. In a moment all attention was on Wonwoo, whose face flushed as he looked away. There was a comfortable silence before Mingyu spoke again; “ Wonwoo! They invited us to help them capture the ghosts tonight!” 

“Wait, what?” Wonwoo asked, any strand of embarrassment gone to the wind. 

“ I did not say that.” Jeonghan announced when he saw a concerned expression on Joshua’s face.

“ You said we could help though.” Mingyu pouted. 

“Technically I asked if you could stay behind and make us snacks while we hunt the ghosts.. you know for energy. Last night we hadn’t eaten and stayed up all night. It was a difficult night. I just wanted food.”

“See?! We are like your home base! We give you support!” 

“Mingyu,” Wonwoo started. “ If you help out, you won’t sleep for twenty four hours, you know that right? You’ll be exhausted during work tomorrow.” 

“ That’s what coffee is for!” Mingyu announced.

“ You hate coffee!”

Silence, and then; “ Hot chocolate then!”

“Fine.”

And so they were a team. As the day went on the team planned their movements carefully; Their electronics charged, and cameras were fixed. All of them charged their phones, only planning to unplug them when they had to go out on the hunt. As it struck one am, Mingyu was already head first into a loaf of bread. Wonwoo was gently combing his fingers through Mingyu’s hair. 

“Is he alright?” Jeonghan asked as he checked on the ghost vacuum: It was Jeonghan’s least favorite tech. It had the ability to grab onto spiritual essence and suck it into the bag. This means it can grab onto a ghost if close enough and capture it like it was stuck in a net. Joshua loved it; he deemed it the most humane, and best for research. 

Jeonghan rather have the ghosts just leave, or send their ectoplasmic DNA into multiple pieces as to stop it from ever returning again. The vacuum was too risky in Jeonghan’s opinion, but it got the job done. 

“Yeah. He’s terrible at all nighters.” Wonwoo replied. “ And he didn’t have a break in the kitchen today. Even if he did though, he wouldn’t have taken it. He wanted to make sure every dish that left this room was perfect.” 

“Should he be sleeping on the bread?” Seungcheol asked. He was polishing a zapper. It was able to make contact with ghost DNA for a short period of time, and stunning the ghosts. It could cause sever damage to humans though, and as a result only Seungcheol was allowed to use it: Joshua would fiddle with it too much and Jeonghan would shoot before thinking. 

“No, but it’s fine.”

“If you’re sure,” Seungcheol replied. 

Joshua had situated himself on top of a counter. Earlier Mingyu had scolded him for fifteen minutes about it, but now that he was a sleep Joshua justified his actions. “So where should we go first?”

The room exchanged looks. 

“Jeonghan you said it was like the lobby was in a time loop right?” Wonwoo asked. Jeonghan nodded. “What happened?”

Jeonghan shrugged. “ Just the same scene repeated over and over and over again. The lobby was a gambling room of sorts. And everyone was happy, but then the front doors were slammed and there would be gun shots. People would be dying. And then, it would repeat.”

“ Anything else.”

Jeonghan avoided eye contact and shrugged. “A crazy loose demon ghost thing had targeted me. He didn’t seem to be a part of the others though.”

“ A stray ghost?” Joshua asked. It was then the boyfriends realized they had yet to actually talk about the night before. 

“ Yeah… but it didn’t do anything to anything or anyone else. I think it may just be a loner. A separate problem for a separate job.”

Wonwoo nodded. “Why was their a gun shot?”

Joshua sprang up in his seat and raised his hand. “ I know this one! This place used to be a gambling place right? But it was run by a Mafia group, and after betraying his family name, the family mafia decided to get revenge. They came in with a guns a blazing! I think actually, the anniversary of that day was yesterday.”

Seungcheol glanced up from his weapon; “ Why would they be stuck in this loop?”

“Because it was the last thing to happen to them. Those spirits are probably trying to undo it.”

“ It’s history though, you can’t undo history.”

“Revengeful ghosts don’t care though.” Jeonghan pointed out.

Joshua pointed out, “ What if they aren’t revengeful. Maybe those are protectors?”

“Can ghosts be protectors?” Wonwoo asked.

Joshua nodded quickly. “ When someone passes away, and refuses to cross over or do whatever a ghost does that causes them to no longer exist in our world, or the in-between, they must have a reason right? Some are revengeful. They stay on earth to get back at those who have wronged them. Some have a last wish. It may be to solve a mystery, or to see someone graduate. I call those Wishers. And lastly, there are ghosts who refuse to crossover because they want to protect. According to my research, the people who gambled and lived here, were practically in harmony. They trusted each other. It was practically a haven. I think whoever was here during the shooting had a strong love for this place and so when they passed away, they decided they must continue to protect it.”

“How does this make them stuck in a time loop?” Wonwoo asked. Joshua scrunched up his nose.

“ I’m not 100% sure, but I think there has to be something else causing the time loop. These ghosts haven’t left because of their love for this place, something they are protecting. Something else must be making them repeat the same scene though.”

Wonwoo nodded, “Seungcheol, you got anything?”

“ I talked with a weird demon man.” Seungcheol announced. 

“The Strange one in 534?” Jeonghan asked. The oldest nodded.

“ Demon man?” Wonwoo inquired. There was a quiet mumbling from Mingyu beside him. The tall boy had nuzzled his face deeper into the bread. 

 

“ Probably not actually a demon, but yeah. Name was Gambino or something. He just, he was weird, said a lot of things that didn’t make sense.”

“Was he also in a loop?” Wonwoo asked.

Silence. 

Joshua perked up. “ THAT’S IT! He’s the other thing!”

Jeonghan raised an eyebrow. “ The other thing?”

“The one stopping them from moving on. Gambino was the family mafia who owned this place! If everyone loved this place, then he must have too! What if he is trying to figure out how to undo what happened. If he isn’t in a loop that means he is not effected by the loop! So he has to be the one who created it.”

“It must be torture.” Seungcheol mumbled, “ Re-watching those you care for die over and over.” 

“ He’s forcing the ones he cares for to stay on this earth and relive this nightmare over and over.” Jeonghan hissed out. “ Hell would be better than that ten fold.” 

Seungcheol wonders if he is cruel because he thinks he may have also tortured himself with watching his parent’s die if he could figure out how to undo it. 

Joshua glanced between his two lovers with pursed lips. A moment passed before Joshua spoke; “ Either way, he’s the one we have to take down.” 

When the clock hit three, the crew was marching down the hallway. Mingyu had been woken up and was working away in the kitchen on snacks. Wonwoo had stealthily snuck the bread outside, for the animals. Mingyu would never know, and if somehow he did he wouldn’t argue with this outcome. 

Although the elevator ride was fast, Seungcheol felt it took an eternity. The demon man’s voice echoed in his head:

“ You should be dead.”

“ You are but a ghost of a man, Seungcheol.”

“You could see your family again.”

Seungcheol wonders, as they walk down the hallway, if the man will let him see his family once more.

Even if it was fake.

Even if it was for a second.

Even if he couldn’t say goodbye.

He wonders if the man will pass on a message, but when he looks at the weapons in his hands he realizes that he probably won’t. 

And even if he could, if he survived, he would be too angry to pass it on. 

Once at the door, the three of them took in a deep breath. Joshua raised his hand ready to knock, but it began to shake. Seungcheol watched curiously as the hand struggled to close in on the door. Jeonghan however chose a different method. The middle aged boy slammed the bottom of his foot against the wood, forcing it open. 

“ Wrong person.” Gambino grumbled, as he watched Jeonghan strut into the room. 

“ Nah, right person.” Jeonghan responded. Joshua rolled a small sphere into the center of the room, green lines, creating a plus sigh, crossed through the sphere, touching the ends of the wall. 

It figuratively enhances the gravity of the human world, forcing the ghosts to abide by the new pressures if they want to continue to stay in the human world. However, it is new and experimental. When Gambino’s eyes scrunched in slight pain, Joshua mentally patted himself on his back. For as much as he knew, it had worked.

“ What do you want?” The man asked. 

“ For you to cross over to the other side, leave the inbetween.”

Gambino rolled his eyes. “ I can’t.”

“And why not?” Seungcheol asked. Gambino’s eyes focused on him.

“I’m busy.” 

“With?” Joshua’s turn.

“ With my own private stuff.” Gambino responded, lighting his cigar. Joshua’s nose scrunched up. “ What? Don’t like cigars? Should grow up.”

“ I will at my own pace.” Joshua mumbled. “ I’m alive, I have that luxury.”

“ Someone here is neither a live nor dead, and yet they also get this luxury, so, I am oh so very sorry but your logic is flawed.”

“ Neither a live nor dead?” Joshua asked, moving forward slightly. Gambino raised an eyebrow and smirked. 

“ Your boy Seungcheol over there.” Gambino responded.

“Cheollie what is he talking about?” Joshua questioned, spinning around to look at him. Seungcheol’s eyes were wide, honest, and confused. As their gazes spoke, Jeonghan watched Gambino reach a hand out towards Joshua. With impeccable speed, Jeonghan slid in front of his younger boyfriend and grabbing the ghost hand in it’s movement. However, as soon as his hand made contact, it disintegrated into a green slime.

“GROSS!” Jeonghan exclaimed. The floor began to shake, Joshua stumbling slightly, only to grab onto the walls. Books fell from shelves, the framed picture dropping to the ground with a bang. The man vanished. The three spun around as the beds began to shake. The sound of doors in the hallway slamming made it’s way into their ears. Suddenly, the windows flung open, as the door to the balcony seemingly unfazed stayed shut. Curious, Joshua stumbled over to the window glancing out. 

Behind him Seungcheol watched as books started to fall above Jeonghan. With a warning, Seungcheol talked Jeonghan onto one of the beds. The tackled boy looked up in horror as Seungcheol gave what he hoped was a comforting smile. His smile vanished when there was a voice.

“Seungcheol!” 

The voice wasn’t Joshua’s, nor was it Jeonghan’s. 

“Come on a trip with us!” 

Seungcheol gazed at the window, the curtains flapping like crazy. Joshua turned around curious, and staring into Seungcheol’s soul. 

“Cheollie? Do you know them?” Joshua asked. Hypnotized, Seungcheol pushed himself away from Jeonghan and to the window. The earthquake that was the room seemed to not effect him, his walking almost even. Joshua on the other hand held onto the window sill hoping for balance. 

“We missed you!” The voices screamed, and as Seungcheol peeked out the window, his assumptions were correct. Once again, in the empty parking lot were his parents and that red RV. This time the RV was in terrible condition. A wheel missing, doors ripped off, the color practically melted off. His mother was in a ripped, burned white dress, while his father had a once stellar suit, now a suit fit for a caveman fitted to his body. Ash was spread across their faces. And yet.   
And yet,Seungcheol found they both looked beautiful.

As Seungcheol stared, Gambino phased through a wall right in front of Jeonghan. Jeonghan shifted, startled, but he kept his gaze on him. When the man moved towards Joshua, Jeonghan sprinted to his spot as a wall once more, blocking him. Gambino rolled his eyes and curled his fingers towards Jeonghan’s neck. With a bored slap, the arm was moved to the side, but as Jeonghan watched the hand move, another hand, seemingly from nowhere, reached out and pulled onto Jeonghan’s hair. With a harsh tug he was tossed across the room. Joshua’s eyes focused on the scene before he reached to grab the weapon in Seungcheol’s arms. 

“Seungcheol let go.” Joshua ordered, pulling on it.

There was no response.

Seungcheol watched as his parents laughed and danced around the RV.

The walls slowly closed in, dark red liquid began to seep through the corners. Joshua tugged on the weapon harder. “Seungcheol!” He cried desperately. As Gambino grew closer, Joshua patted his pockets grabbing whatever he could and chucking it at the ghost. Behind the demon, Joshua watched Jeonghan stare at the corner in horror. There was nothing there.

“Jeonghan!” Joshua cried out. Jeonghan twisted his head, shakily, towards Joshua who was slowly climbing onto the bed. The furniture though, moved steadily closer to the demon as the walls closed in. 

Gambino chuckled and raised his arms letting the furniture begin to fly around. Jeonghan’s eyes watched with terror as lots of it flew towards him, missing him by inches. “Leave here.” Gambino ordered.

“No!” Joshua responded, his eyes narrowing. “ You aren’t solving anything here.”

“I”m solving plenty.” More furniture began flying, chair crashing and breaking against walls, ceiling tiles falling to their death. 

“ No you’re just torturing them you aren’t-,”

There was a loud screeching of tires, followed by a desperate cry. Joshua’s attention flew towards Seungcheol who had an arm reached out the window. Suddenly a sound of a car crashing, screaming, and the crackling of fire echoed.

“MOM!” Seungcheol screamed. “DAD!” The oldest stared at the balcony door and sprinted at it, crashing it open. Joshua, instinctually, followed Seungcheol, who already had a leg half way onto the balcony fence. 

“Seungcheol!” Joshua cried out. In a rush, Joshua wrapped his arms tightly around Seungcheol’s waist tugging him away from the fence. The taller, stronger and blinded by tears shoved Joshua back easily. 

“Stay away! I have to-,”

Joshua shook his head and scrambled to grab onto the boy again. “ You don’t have to do anything. They aren’t-,”

“ THEY’RE DYING JOSHUA!”

“THEY’RE DEAD SEUNGCHEOL!” 

An ear piercing scream reached Joshua’s ears. Joshua turned his head to see Jeonghan clawing at his ears as Gambino spoke to him.

Joshua fisted his hands into Seungcheol’s clothes, tears falling down his own cheeks. “Fuck.” Joshua cursed, glancing at his boyfriend on the floor in the room. The boyfriend in his arms was pulling on the bars of the fence screaming profanities. It took Joshua all he had to hold him in place.

“Jeonghan!” Joshua screamed, staring at his boyfriend. “ Jeonghan! Don’t listen to Gambino. Listen to me! You’re okay!”

“Let the fuck go Joshua or I will-,” Seungcheol threatened. 

Joshua shook his head, and pressed a gentle kiss against Seungcheol’s heated neck. “ I can’t Seungcheol.” Joshua whispered. The words failed to stop the taller boy from kicking and thrashing in Joshua’s hold. “I Love you so much Seungcheol. I can’t.”

Trying to calm himself, Joshua breathed in deeply. It was too much. Too much sound, too many voices, too many things. Seungcheol’s threats took over his mind, Jeonghan’s cries squeezed at his heart. He couldn’t think. He couldn’t process. He felt his hands slipping when there was another sound of screeching tires.

Seungcheol’s words were a blubbered mess; “ Why is it happening again?” 

Joshua pressed another kiss against Seungcheol’s skin. “ It’s not happening. Seungcheol I promise. It’s not happening. None of this is happening.”

“ Stop fucking lying Joshua.”

“I wouldn’t lie to you Cheollie.” Joshua struggled to keep his voice soft, as he felt hiccups start to appear. “ I love you Seungcheol. I’m so sorry. Please, please just look away.”

He didn’t look away.

Jeonghan’s cries were getting louder, the car screeches more often, and his grip becoming weaker.

With a shaky breath, Joshua looked back into he room. The Zapper, abandoned when Seungcheol ran to the balcony. With a calculated glance, he noted the distance of the ghost. With one last kiss to Seungcheol’s kiss, Joshua let go of the older boy. Sprinting back, Joshua grabbed the zapper, and slid back in time to stop Seungcheol. Bending his body uncomfortably, Joshua aimed the zapper, and shot. 

When it hit Gambino, everything froze. The world stopped shaking, the doors in the hallway froze. There was no longer the sound of a car screeching. Jeonghan’s cries had softened. Joshua tightened his grip on Seungcheol’s waist, even though the older boy seemed to have suddenly lose all fight. 

“Jeonghan, please. Please listen to me. I’m a good voice, I’m Joshua, Jisoo. I need you to pick up your vacuum and I need you to get rid of Gambino. Please. Jeonghan.”

No response.

“Jeonghan.”

Crickets.

“Hannie please.” Joshua pleaded. Gambino was starting to twitch, the shock was running out. Joshua lifted the zapper once more taking aim, but he found his arm shaking, threatening to hit Jeonghan if he shot. “ Jeonghan, I love you. I need you to do this.”

Silence.

“If you can just please pick up the damn vacuum.” Joshua teared up, feeling his legs starting to wobble. His adrenaline was gone.

“Hannie, please.” Joshua closed his eyes exhausted.

There was a zap sound, a sound of fluttering and a click. Joshua opened his eyes slowly to see Jeonghan holding the vacuum out in front of him. 

Joshua nodded, and let himself sink to the floor his arms moving to wrap around Seungcheol’s shoulders.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact #1: Hotel Arc was supposed to be one chapter at most (6-8 pages). But I wrote more than I expected. PT 3 alone is 12 pages.  
> Fun Fact #2: Mingyu and Wonwoo were supposed to be in a different chapter/ different characters.
> 
> I know the past two chapters have been very big on Seungcheol and on the emotional side, but it alls has its purpose I hope!  
> I read comments, and I try to use them to write more in terms of hints, symbolism and character development, because although I know my characters my purpose as a writer is to get you to know them well! I just, I feel this chapter was rushed, and I apologize.
> 
> I'm also really busy with my job, school, and the fact that I once again have to move countries T.T So I apologize for late posts, and if they are not late, then they are not edited.
> 
> But now that this is all done: What do you think of my guest appearance? What does Gambino mean neither alive nor dead? We know an aspect of Seungcheol's past, what about Jeonghan's? Joshua's? 
> 
> There were fewer hints in the chapter for what's going to happen in the future, but I needed to end this arc! Sorry! 
> 
> LoVe
> 
> V.AY


	7. Chapter 6: The Church

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You have to get rid of a demon as fast as possible.” The priest announced. “ Demons live, strive off of sin, off of defying god and the morals of their host. They get stronger, and more dangerous. Exorcisms are the quickest, most tiresome way of getting rid of a possession. But sometimes, sometimes even so, it doesn’t work.” The man’s voice was burdened with guilt.
> 
> “ How can it not work?”
> 
> The priest sent the Jeonghan an exhausted smile. “ It happens. Sometimes you can try to force it out, but it’s at risk of losing everything that made the host, a person. He was a child, he didn’t understand and the demon had made him weak.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This has not been edited! I apologize!

Maybe it was the speed change, or the weird laugh. Maybe it was the engine roaring for a split second, or maybe Jeonghan really had spidey senses. But in a split-second Jeonghan was sitting up from his bed in the RV, and sprinting across to the driver. Behind him, Seungcheol woke up dazed, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. On the other side of the front window, a tree was coming closer and closer, faster and faster. The boy in the driver’s seat sat static, his hands seemingly off the wheel. 

“Joshua!” Jeonghan exclaimed reaching over the driver and twisting the steering wheel as hard as he could. However, with the youngest’s foot still pressed against the gas, the RV continued it’s adventure down the, thankfully almost empty, highway. In the corner of Jeonghan’s eyes, he saw emotionless brown eyes, staring straight at death, with a bone tingling smile twitching on Joshua’s face. The youngest’s arms were crossed, but Jeonghan did not miss the obsessive scratching against the skin. 

In a swift motion, Jeonghan let go of the steering wheel and ripped Joshua’s arms apart from each other. “ Seungcheol get your butt here now,” 

Without even waiting for a reply, Jeonghan pulled the younger boy away from the steering wheel and threw the younger towards the kitchen. Luckily, Seungcheol had caught the boy just in time, before he fell to the ground like a man without bones. As he did so, Jeonghan made sure to keep pressure on the gas before it stalled the car, and steadily maneuvered himself so he was the one fully driving. In a few minutes Jeonghan parked the car to the side of the road, and leaned his head against the seat, exhausted. 

But then Joshua laughed.

Turning his head around to see the boy, Jeonghan saw him on the ground, cradled by Seungcheol. The older boy was gently peppering kisses on the younger’s arms and then Joshua’s head twisted towards Jeonghan, the eerie smile still present. 

The last laugh was lifeless. “Ha.” In the next second, Joshua’s neck seemed to twist similar to an owl and extended up to force his suddenly sharp teeth into Seungcheol’s neck.

And then Jeonghan felt the world vanish beneath him. Within a second, Jeonghan’s eyes flashed open, momentarily blinded by unfamiliar sunlight. His fingers curled into the sheets below him. An arm wrapped around his waist curled around tighter. Jeonghan glanced to his side to see Seungcheol buried into his side. Hesitantly, Jeonghan pushed himself onto his elbows, careful not to disturb the other boy. They were in the RV. The bedroom door open, giving him access to see the drivers seat in the front. In the seat was Joshua, bobbing his head contently to the soft music playing from the radio. 

A fluttering of eyelids tried to shield tears from escaping, as Jeonghan stared at the boy in the front seat. The boy had began to hum, and his fingers tapped against the steering wheel. The morning light enveloped the boy tightly. As the music switched to the next song, Jeonghan silently slipped himself out of Seungcheol’s hold. The oldest grabbing the nearest pillow instead. Wiping away a stray tear as he moved, Jeonghan tiptoed to the driver. The latter’s attention on the road did not notice the other behind him.

Jeonghan’s breathing became unsteady as he took in the sight before him. When his gaze focused in on the scars on the arms, Jeonghan reached to the back of his neck. The scars still there. Jeonghan wondered how long they would stay. When his gaze moved to the boy’s catlike eyes watching the road, Jeonghan bit his lip. They were fluttering from object to object, desperately trying to pay attention to the road ahead. Jeonghan fondly thought, his eyes were always dancing, gaze sliding from side to side. They were always curious, questioning, happy. Jeonghan fluttered his eyes closed, but the darkness was welcomed with pain; his memories rapidly played the dream over and over. The laugh, the lifeless gaze, the boy Jeonghan loves. With a shuttering breath, Jeonghan opened his eyes once more and glanced down at the driver. 

The one standing, leaned down pressing a faint kiss on the other boy’s head. “ How much longer?” Jeonghan asked, hoping to keep his breath steady. 

“ About two hours. You shouldn’t be awake.” Joshua responded. 

“ I shouldn’t?” Jeonghan asked, as he slid into the passenger seat. He placed his back against the door, and curled himself up so he still fit on the seat. Joshua side eyed his position, but did not comment.

“ It’s only six am, you need to sleep more.”

“ I’ve slept more than you have.” It was true, as long as Joshua had not fallen asleep at the wheel that is. 

“ No you’ve been in bed more than I have, besides you need it more than me.” Joshua responded, and leaned over the steering wheel a bit to check the exit. 

“ I fail to see your logic.” Jeonghan yawned. Joshua chuckled. 

“You haven’t been sleeping Jeonghan.” Joshua pointed out.

“ What was I doing just now, then?”

“ You were having a nightmare, and tossing and turning. That’s not,” Joshua sighed. “ That’s not sleeping. You need to rest. Like with good dreams of rainbows and stuff.” 

“ I can say the same to you. You have yet to actually rest for more than two, three hours at a time since the hotel. You need sleep too.” 

There was silence.

“ Joshua.” 

“ Jeonghan.”

“ You need to sleep. Whatever you’re thinking, or questioning or obsessing over can wait until you are well rested.”

Joshua shrugged. “And this conversation can wait until you have a full nights rest.” 

“ I don’t choose to wake up throughout the night Shua. You however choose to not sleep.”

Jeonghan watched Joshua’s nose crinkle slightly. “That’s not. I don’t.”

Sighing, Jeonghan reached over and grabbed one of Joshua’s hands, pulling it back towards himself. The older boy fiddled with the younger’s fingers gently. Hesitantly, as if the movement would scare away Jeonghan, Joshua moved his hands back to his side. “Shua?” Jeonghan noticed Joshua hiding the scratch marks against his jeans. 

“ I’m not angry Shua.” Jeonghan whispered. 

“ I know.” 

“ I’m worried Shua.” 

“ I know.”   
Jeonghan nodded his head before placing it against his curled up knees. “ Are you angry?”

The younger shook his head.

“Are you worried?”

The younger shrugged. 

“ Are you scared?”

Joshua’s fingers curled around the steering wheel tighter. 

“ Scared of what?” 

Joshua mumbled; “ I don’t know.”

“ You, Mr. Joshua I know everything Hong, doesn’t know what he’s scared of?” That comment instigated a small chuckle from Joshua. “ Either we have found the most difficult question on earth, or Joshua, you are lying to me.” Jeonghan responded, raising an eye brow as he spoke. Joshua’s chuckles quickly ceased at the last words.

After moments of silence, Joshua finally said; “I guess it’s the most difficult question on earth then.” 

Jeonghan’s shoulders fell in defeat. “Tell me when you figure out the answer then, okay?” 

Joshua agreed silently. The former leaned his head against the seat and let his eyes close. His body molding into the seat as the two listened to the soft music. 

And then Joshua asked; “ Is Seungcheol okay?”

Jeonghan opened his eyes to stare at the driver. “ He’s in the back, you can check yourself.” The older boy watched as Joshua’s eyes flickered to the rearview mirror, which honestly had no use in this vehicle, then back to the road. 

“ I just, is he sleeping okay?”

Jeonghan smiled fondly; “ Yes and similar to a koala bear, like always.” 

“ Is he-,”

“ Unlike us he can sleep through almost any trauma.” Jeonghan joked. “ but he does awake occasionally and checks if either one of us has moved.” 

“ He’s going to be freaked out when you aren’t there.” Joshua responded. Jeonghan grinned. 

“ And then he will rush over here, like a knight in shining armor and ask with that deep, husky, morning voice of his where the hell I am. And I’ll jump up and attack him with kisses because if not he will be mad, but I’ll still have fun.” 

The driver rolled his eyes, but an entertained smile was still painted on his face. With that, they fell into another comfortable silence. However, after another thirty minutes, Joshua asked one last question; 

“ Jeonghan, what was your nightmare about this time?”

The boy in question’s lips pursed, and he turned his gaze to the road. “ Joshua, how much do you remember about the time at the haunted museum?” 

“ Was it about that?” 

“ Not specifically no, but I’m curious.” 

Joshua’s eyes curled up in confusion. “ It was pretty cool, religion exorcisms and stuff are cool to watch, but I dunno. After the whole thing, I don’t remember much. You said I fainted, so I guess that sums it up. Cool religious priests coming in like it was a movie, and then the next thing I remember is I woke up outside with Seungcheol and you fighting.”

“ That’s it?”

There was a pause of hesitancy, but in the end Joshua nodded. “That’s it… what does this have to do with your nightmare?”

“ It’s just,” Jeonghan’s mind swam around quick digging up a lie. “ It was related to you fainting. I dunno, thought you were dead when I first saw you there. I guess I’m not over it.” 

It wasn’t a complete lie. 

Joshua smiled softly. “ I’m still here. I’m still kicking. And I’m not going anywhere.” Jeonghan glanced back at the boy, giggling softly. 

“JEONGHAN!?” A deep, husky, voice screamed, followed by rapid footsteps. Jeonghan watched, amused, as Seungcheol slid to the drivers side, and right when he was about to question Joshua, Jeonghan stood up. He wrapped his arms around the older’s waist and strategically placed kisses across Seungcheol’s neck. 

“ Hey sexy.” Jeonghan’s voice although slightly muffled, was still clearly understood. Joshua barked out a loud laugh as he noticed the pure shock written on Seungcheol’s face. 

For the next two hours, Joshua and Seungcheol had switched places. As a result, Joshua was forced into their bed, his body manhandled until it was curled into Jeonghan’s side. Joshua didn’t realize how tired he actually was, until he let his eyes close. 

He was out until Seungcheol, against Jeonghan’s wishes, woke him up because they had arrived. Reluctantly, the three changed into their daily clothes and adventured out into the real world. Seungcheol had claimed Jeonghan’s hand as his own, while Joshua analyzed the map on his phone. 

“ What should we do first?” Jeonghan asked. 

“ Maybe see the house?” Seungcheol suggested. 

“ I think we should go ask the people around if they know anything first.” Jeonghan announced. Joshua scoffed, and watched Seungcheol roll his eyes, amused. 

“ You should have said that instead of asking.” 

Jeonghan twisted his lips. “ I had to pretend to be interested in your ideas first though.”

“ So lucky to have such a caring boyfriend,” Seungcheol sang, leaning over to peck Jeonghan’s lips. Joshua watched patiently, before Seungcheol leaned over to press his lips against Joshua’s too. “ And lucky to have such a supportive one too.”

Joshua’s eyes widened, and jokingly exclaimed, “ He said I was caring last week!”

Jeonghan gasped; “ And I was the supportive one! What changed?”

Before Seungcheol could speak, Joshua added; “ He probably mixed up who he was talking to him.” With a faked sniffle, he continued. “ He probably doesn’t even know who is who.”

“Oh my god.” Seungcheol grumbled. 

“ Do you think he even cares?” Jeonghan asked. 

“ Do you think he has others?”

They both gasped, eyes widened. “ Oh my god. This is what we get for dating someone polyamorous.”

Seungcheol groaned, dragging his free hand across his face. “ You two are both polyamorous too.” 

“ At least we know who we are dating.” Jeonghan snapped. With a defeated sigh, Seungcheol slid his fingers out of Jeonghan’s grasp and wrapped it tightly around Jeonghan’s waist. His fingers digging in slightly, but not enough to hurt. His other hand cupped Jeonghan’s chin and lifted it to his face. Jeonghan’s eyes stared into his own, challenging. 

“ I’m dating you. Jeonghan Yoon.” Seungcheol announced loudly - if he had a megaphone he would have used it- pressing his lips against Jeonghan’s. The younger boy sighed happily, and wrapped his arms around Seungcheol’s shoulders. Seungcheol smirked, nibbling on the other boy’s lips softly, and the moment his lips parted, Seungcheol separated from Jeonghan. The latter whined in annoyance, but didn’t fight it, for the next second Seungcheol had grasped Joshua’s wrist, tugged him over. 

“ And I am dating you, Joshua Hong.” His voice was softer this time, watching as Joshua’s gaze jumped around Seungcheol’s face. “ And no one else.” Seungcheol added, before diving his head down to kiss the youngest boy. The other hand holding the side of Joshua’s face lovingly. Joshua’s lips curled and his fingers gripped onto the end of the taller’s shirt, innocently. 

When they pulled apart, Jeonghan slipped an arm around Joshua’s shoulders, sporting a cheshire grin. “ Success.”   
Joshua giggled. “ But now the question is,”

The youngest and oldest males stared at Jeonghan confused. 

“ Are we dating you?” Jeonghan asked. 

Seungcheol squeezed Jeonghan’s nosed and wiggled it back and forth as a response. “ Let’s go interview people. See what we are dealing with.” He stated. 

As the began to walk around, Seungcheol heard Joshua mutter out the softest of sentences to Jeonghan. 

“I’m dating the both of you too.” 

Seungcheol could practically feel Jeonghan beaming. “ We know.” He said.

Questioning the citizens was easy, getting information proved to be hard. Some people were over the moon with explaining what has been happening in the neighborhood the past few months, but that also included festivals, economy etc. Jeonghan had annoyed a few people, finding himself impatient with the lack of specific information. He rarely spent more than ten minutes with a person. 

Seungcheol on the other hand, was only lucky with the males he’d interview. They gave him information, most of it useless, but Seungcheol found himself enjoying conversation with the locals so he didn’t mind. The females on the other hand were a comparatively more interested in his muscles, and trying the newest pick up line. With the males he spent at least fifteen minutes with, the women only about five. 

Joshua though, ever the saint, spent his time with the same people with over thirty minutes each. His adventures usually started with the necessary information, but the people being interviewed often would start going on rants, stories. Never one to interrupt a person’s personal story, Joshua patiently waited for their stories to come to an end. If it didn’t seem like it was going to end anytime soon, he’d try to signal a boyfriend to walk over. If Seungcheol noticed, he’d have come up with an apology and a reason to excuse Joshua from the conversation. If it was Jeonghan though, the boy would simply be pulled away. 

After a couple of hours, the three found themselves lead to a white church.   
Automatically, Joshua lifted his phone up and began to snap pictures of it. As he did so, the other two spoke:

“ What information did you get?” Seungcheol asked. Jeonghan shrugged. 

“ The old family that we met left about a month ago. The town had asked them to leave over three months ago though, when the boy was being a menace to society. Didn’t know a whole town could kick you out.” Jeonghan noted.

Seungcheol shrugged, and typed the notes into his own phone. “ Probably weren’t kicked out, but instead were peer pressured into it. Did you get anything specific on the kid?”

“ He was a good kid apparently, most of the time. He had his moments like everyone. But like a year ago things started getting weird I guess. He was getting into fights, and scaring people.”  
Seungcheol raised an eyebrow. “So he was just a child going through a rebellious phase?”

“ I mean I guess.” Jeonghan shrugged. “ I couldn’t get much. People didn’t seem to enjoy talking to me.”

Seungcheol chuckled. “That’s because you were incredibly impatient with them.”

“They kept going off topic.” The younger whined. As he did so, Joshua walked back over. 

“ I have info on the kid.” Joshua perked up. Seungcheol nodded his head towards him, signaling him to continue. “ Like Jeonghan said a year ago things started to change. Kids were terrified of him, saying at random times he would just seem to lose control and start attacking someone. The playground was never safe apparently. A kid said his eyes would lose all focus, looked like a plastic doll.” 

Jeonghan found himself focusing on that last sentence. Seungcheol seemed to also have as he asked; “ Plastic doll?”

“That was the kids explanation. I’m guessing he meant it was lifeless.” Joshua shrugged. “ But there would be episodes where nothing would happen for like a week. But when it wouldn’t happen, the kid seemed depressed, scared. He stopped talking at one point. I think the parents thought it was time to change environments so they left.”

“ You think it had anything to do with the family?”

Joshua shrugged. “Anything is possible in this world.”

Jeonghan finally spoke after a few moments; “ Wait were there any other symptoms? Besides you know looking like a lifeless doll?”

Joshua scrunched up his nose, before shrugging. “ That’s usually as far as I’d get with the locals before they’d tell me a story about the kid scaring their kids. Oh! Apparently the kid was always pretending to want to kill people, but to be honest with everything happening, I don’t think he was pretending.”

Jeonghan’s eyes wandered as he thought, his nails pulling at his lips. Seungcheol and Joshua exchanged glances before continuing. Seungcheol spoke next:

“My turn.” His voice seemed hesitant as he spoke. His eyes giving time on both of his boyfriends before continuing. I think I heard them talking about random scratch markings on the kids body. Some of the families used to think it was abuse.” Seungcheol could practically see Jeonghan’s ears twitch at the words, and Joshua peek down at his arms. “ But the parents were always so frantic over the scars, and seemed there really wasn’t anything going on behind closed doors.”

“That’s good.” Jeonghan nodded. “ That there wasn’t anything going on.”

Joshua also bobbed his head softly, letting his gaze move from his arms to Jeonghan. “Yeah.” 

Taking in a deep breath, Jeonghan plastered a smile on to his face: “ Anyway, the last of the info we all clearly got is that this Church was their Church and they had asked a lot of help from them. So! Let’s go!” The long haired male tuned on his heel and marched towards the church. However as he did so, a shiver ran up his spine. He froze mid-step. 

“Hannie?” Seungcheol asked as he began to follow him, Joshua on his tail: The youngest was still taking as many photos as he could.

Jeonghan absent-mindedly waved behind him and continued into he church. The tingling throughout his body becoming more and more apparent. He didn’t understand why though, they were only walking into a church. When Jeonghan pushed open the large wooden doors, he was faced with an empty hall. Red wood benches, placed in rows down to the alter. A gorgeous stained glass piece placed high above them, accented by pearl arches. The sound of footsteps reached Jeonghan’s ears, and so his eyes began to scatter around looking for the cause. A man in a white priest robe gracefully walked across the walkway towards Jeonghan. Jeonghan’s attention was stolen when he heard Seungcheol’s voice, soft yet urgent; “ Joshua.”

Jeonghan’s head spun around to see Joshua grabbing onto the entrance way with a hand, the other pressed against his temple. Seungcheol carefully reached a hand underneath and behind the young boy, trying to help him up. 

“Are you okay?” Seungcheol asked. Joshua nodded, but the quick rise and falls of his chest said otherwise. “ Let’s sit down.” 

Joshua shook his head, pressing his feet hard against the floor as if it would glue him there. “I’m okay, just a dizzy spell. Give me a second.” 

Seungcheol lifted his head to meet Jeonghan’s gaze. Their concern shining bright in both. Then, there was a tap on Jeonghan’s shoulder. Jeonghan spun around, to greet the priest. 

“ Uh hi, um.” Jeonghan glanced back at Joshua. His usual ways of talking suddenly seemed to be inappropriate for this world. “ I’m Jeonghan. These two are Seungcheol and Joshua.” The boy gestured to them, respectably. 

The priest smiled gently at Jeonghan, not giving the other two much mind. Usually, Jeonghan would have been annoyed at the fact, but his mind was still reeling about Joshua. 

“ Welcome, child of god.” The priest greeted. His voice was soft, aging. Jeonghan responded with an awkward smile, his eyes occasionally glancing back at Joshua who’s legs began to wobble as he was guided to a chair.

“ Um, thank you.” Jeonghan finally vocally responded, once Joshua was sat onto a bench. Seungcheol was behind the boy giving him a half-assed, but heartfelt massage on his shoulders. 

“For what reason have you come today?” The priest asked. Jeonghan bit the inside of his lip, looking back at Seungcheol who only gave him an encouraging smile.

Sighing, Jeonghan gave the priest a wider grin. “ I, well we, have some questions, that I’d appreciate being answered.” Although, Jeonghan had gestured at his boyfriends, once again the priest refused to let his attention stray from Jeonghan.

“Anything for a child of god.” 

“Yeah…”Jeonghan trailed off, he side-glanced at Joshua, who was trying to stand up, but Seungcheol had the hands firmly against his shoulders. “ But um, but first, can we have a glass of water?”

Hesitantly, the priest nodded. As he walked off, Jeonghan spun around to face Joshua. 

“Are you okay?” Jeonghan asked, concerned. He shuffled over in front of the boy, kneeling at his feet. 

Joshua nodded, a caring smile on his face. “ Of course. Just some vertigo or whatever. We haven’t eaten a lot recently, my body may be fighting back because of that.”  
Although, not convinced, Jeonghan nodded. Within a few minutes, the priest had walked back with a glass of water. “ Here you go.” The priest said.

“Oh, it’s for Joshua.” Jeonghan admitted, taking the cup carefully before moving it to Joshua. The boy gratefully smiled up at the long haired boy, and settled the cup between his hands. The youngest male took tiny, quiet sips. His boyfriends watched him closely, as if every drop would have him better in seconds. When the males turned their attention back to the priest, Seungcheol noticed the oldest male clutching to the cross dangling from his neck. The old man’s face was frozen, his gaze unmoving from Joshua. Automatically, Seungcheol curled his fingers on Joshua’s shoulders just a tad tighter. 

“ I see.” The priest mumbled, but quickly changed his demeanor when he looked back at Jeonghan. “ So what questions do you have for us today?”

“ There was a family here a couple months ago. They had a child, pretty well known to be a troubled kid around here.” With every word, Jeonghan was carefully watching the priest’s gaze flicker. “ We were wondering if you knew of this child.”

Albeit hesitant, the priest nodded. “ Yes, I knew of him.”

“His family often went to this church, right?”

“They did, yes.”

“And they asked for help from you all, correct?”

The priest’s eyes narrowed; “ What is this about exactly?”

“We want to know what was going on with the child, and why they came to you for help.” 

With a glance to Joshua, the priest responded; “ Is that really the reason you came here?”

“Yeah, it is.” Confused, Jeonghan nodded. “ We’re Paranormal Investigators and we heard about the kid and some special circumstances. We want to you know, investigate the paranormal? Can you tell us exactly what happened， or whatever you know.” 

Sighing, the priest bobbed his head and sat himself on one of the benches. “ They were a new family, moved into the blue house a couple of streets down. Very friendly, the mother a devote Christian. We loved her here, always willing to help. The kid, he was energetic. He didn’t originally cause trouble, anything he did was what we would accidental sin, or mistakes. It was after their family visited them- everyone knows everyone here- that things began to change. 

“The family always came to church looking exhausted, and would stay an hour later for prayer. We thought they were just going through a hard time, but then the child began to act up. It was weeks after it started, that the mother came to us for help. 

“ I learned their son had confessed to them he had played with a ouija board, and they had been struggling ever since. I asked them to bring the kid over to me after a service one day. When they brought him over, my shoulders had deflated.”

Jeonghan raised an eyebrow. “ Was it bad?”

“ Horrible.” The priest mumbled, his eyes gazing at the stained glass windows as if he could see the story unfold in between the colors. “ His eyes were unfocused, his hands were shaking. He had scratches-,” The priest’s eyes flickered to Joshua. The youngest boy’s shoulders were rising and falling at quick rates. “ Scratches as if he was trying to dig something out of him.” 

Jeonghan’s eyes followed the older man’s line of sight. “ What did you do?”

“I tried a prayer, hoping it was as simple as a lost ghost, perhaps not a demon, but a ghost begging to be alive again. But when I pulled out my cross the kid began to scream.” The man fiddled with the cross. “ I still prayed, and as I did, the child began to scream a language I didn’t know. His hands were gripping his arms almost desperately. I knew we had to do an exorcism.” 

Jeonghan shakily breathed out, listening intently. “ An exorcism…”

“ You have to get rid of a demon as fast as possible.” The priest announced. “ Demons live, strive off of sin, off of defying god and the morals of their host. They get stronger, and more dangerous. Exorcisms are the quickest way, most tiresome way of getting rid of a possession. But sometimes, sometimes it doesn’t work.” The man’s voice was burdened with guilt.

“ How can it not work?”

The priest sent the Jeonghan an exhausted smile. “ It happens. Sometimes you can try to force it out, but it’s at risk of losing everything that made the host, a person. He was a child, he didn’t understand and the demon had made him weak.”

“But how can it not work?!” Jeonghan’s voice rose in pitch. Seungcheol’s eyes snapped over Jeonghan. Joshua quickly covered his ears, and curled in on himself. 

“ An exorcism is an act in which you borrow “authority” from Him.” The priest explains. “ But there has to be an understanding, an acceptance of what is about to happen from both parties. The priest or bishop performing the exorcist must have renounced their sins in Jesus’s name, and hold the power to do so. The host, they also must admit to their sins even to those he did not do by his own will. This keeps the demon from having anything to hold on to anymore. But the child could not remember anything he had done, did not want to say sorry for what he had no memory of. He did not understand.”

“ So you couldn’t help him?” Jeonghan growled. With two steps, Seungcheol was at Jeonghan’s side. The oldest investigator watched Jeonghan with the utmost confusion. He couldn’t understand why the man was so persistent, but even so Seungcheol curled his fingers with Jeonghan’s. Almost in that same second, Jeonghan’s shoulders deflated, but his nails still dug into Seungcheol’s skin.

The priest avoided any eye contact with the two. “ We tried, but the demon grew too strong. If we were to attempt anything, it would be at the life of a child, and we were not to have blood on our hands.” The old man then turned his attention back to Jeonghan. “ We sent them away, to find someone who knew how to handle a demon that could touch a bible.”

All three investigator’s eyes widened. “Touch a bible?” Seungcheol whispered, staring in shock at the old man.

“Sometimes, it is best to admit that it is out of your hands, and leave it to someone greater, and sometimes, sometimes that is to let God do His job.” 

Jeonghan’s shoulders rose once more, deeply breathing in. Seungcheol gently rubbed his thumb against the outer parts of the other male’s hand. After a few moments, Seungcheol noticed the shoulders droop slowly. However, he still refused to let the angered boy continue the conversation. He leaned over his shoulder and let his voice echo through Jeonghan’s ears; 

“ Go comfort Joshua, or get him more water. I’ll take over from here.” Jeonghan huffed, but followed the instruction anyway. 

With that, Seungcheol sent the priest a friendly smile. The priest returned it, and rubbed his hands together. “ Any more questions?”

Seungcheol shrugged. “ Just a few more. I’m not an expert on religion, or demonic possession by any means so I may ask some dumb questions.” 

The priest chuckled. “ If you were, you wouldn’t have come to speak with me.”

“ Actually, I think it is always important to double check with someone, no matter how long you have done something.”

“ Do you now?” The priest’s smile grew. Seungcheol bowed his head with a bashful smile. 

“Yeah, but anyway,” Seungcheol started. “ Do you know why the boy was possessed?”

The priest tilted his head. “ Like I said, he had played with an ouija board.”

“No, no, I understood that. Just, what makes a demon or a ghost or whatever possess or take over a body?”

As if he has heard this question thousands of times - Seungcheol wouldn’t be shocked if he had- he nodded his head and rolled his shoulders. “ That, if we knew that, it wouldn’t happen as often as it does.” He began. “ But to our understanding, they are attracted to the ones who search them out.”

“ Who would search them out?” Seungcheol laughed. The priest chuckled, but his laugh was empty.

“ It’s not always a conscious choice. Curious people, those who want to understand, or those who are way to naive are the ones who get possessed. Children as a result, are the ones to be possessed the most often, or those who can communicate with the other world, comfortably. Some people, feel the need to talk with the other world. You must have some of that feeling inside you, if you so actively seek them out yourself.”

“ I wouldn’t say it’s a need to talk with them.” Seungcheol noted. However an image of his family flashed in his mind, but only for a split second. “ But I do want to understand it,or at least help those who need us.”

The priest pursed his lips. “ Any reason as to why you wish to understand it?”

Again the image of his family. 

“ No, not really.”

With a raised eyebrow, the priest stared a Seungcheol. “ No one precious to you causing a need to learn?” 

His father’s smile. 

“ Not me, no. I mean, Joshua, the other male with us, is the one always needing to learn.” Seungcheol joked.

“Joshua? Named after the man who became the leader of the Israelite tribes after the death of Moses, I suppose.”

Seungcheol chuckled awkwardly. “ To be honest, I have no idea. I haven’t read the bible.” 

As if it was magic, the priest pulled out a bible - it was on the bench. “ Here,”

“ I actually wasn’t planning on-,”

The book was shoved against his chest. “ Read it.”

“ Oh, okay. Thank you.” Awkwardly, Seungcheol held the book against his chest. There was a far away ringing of a bell, distracting the priest momentarily. 

“I must also explain something to you three.” That attracted all of their attention, even Joshua who had his eyelids slowly falling shut, exhausted. “ Sometimes what is thought to be a possession, is not just a possession and as a result a basic exorcism is almost useless.” 

Jeonghan scoffed. “What is that supposed to mean.”

“ Sometimes people are chosen by demons, or even angels, as creatures they want to protect, or change, or help. Angels find someone they believe they have not helped enough, and they choose that person to protect, sometimes the chosen one becomes one with the angel to the point they themselves become similar to a guardian angel. Demons sometimes find someone they define as a perfect host, someone practically willing to let the Demon control them. Those who are taken by a Demon, without a contract with the devil, or not necessarily by force, tend to find it most difficult to part with their possessor; What ties the demon to him is no longer just past sin, but sometimes related to something greater. For example, our Seven deadly sins; Lust, Gluttony, Sloth, Wrath, Envy, Pride and Greed.” 

Jeonghan’s eyes flickered down to Joshua whose hand began to tap against his legs, an arm twitching slightly. Ignoring the looks from the priest, Jeonghan rubbed his arms up and down the youngest boys arms comfortably. The priest, as they did so, stood up.

“Thank you for taking interest in this child, but I advise you to only to continue to research if each and every one of you are up for the task.” The priest announced, taking his time to look at every single one of them. “ Some of you,” His eyes focused in on Jeonghan, “ Were well equipped before walking into this room, while some, should perhaps take a few days to question their position in this mess.” 

Jeonghan’s eyes narrowed at the priest, but he kept his lips tight. Shuffling his feet, Seungcheol made his way back to his boyfriend’s sides. Unceremoniously, and only when he priest turned to walk back to the front, Seungcheol dropped the bible on to Joshua’s lap. The youngest boy flinched, dropping the book onto the bench beside him. 

Seungcheol proceeded to apologize for scaring him, peppering kisses on the younger boy’s face, eliciting a laugh but Jeonghan on the other hand, fought tears from building up behind his eye lids. One of his hands tiredly dragged itself down his cheek. His eyes focused in on the smile of Joshua, the cheer, the life. He ignored the twisting of his stomach, and the mocking bible. When Jeonghan moved to look at the priest once more, he found that they were alone. The echo of footsteps gone. Jeonghan decided, as he stared into the empty marble palace of God, he was ecstatic he never went to church as a child.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Have a break from the dramatics from the last few chapters! I struggled with writing this chapter, deciding what I could tell you, and what I think should be kept hidden for a little longer. A lot is explained though here, questions that could help you understand the reasons as to why things are happening.   
> No matter, I hope it was an entertaining one. I tried to make up for the long 'explainy' part at the end, with more stuff in the beginning!
> 
> I'm excited for next chapter, I hope you all are too!! 
> 
> I love everyone's comments, Please continue to tell me what you think, because although (As I say this in every chapter), I write for myself, I do post for you all! Hearing comments continues to inspire me to continue this story. Thank you for your time and your lovely messages!!
> 
> Sincerely
> 
> V.AY
> 
> BTW: Ilo2498 has begun to translate this story into French! If you are a native French speaker and find it easier, or want to practice French, please go check out the Translated version on her account, and her Wattpad! https://my.w.tt/HB0uAFabVM !!!!! 
> 
> Thank you!


	8. Chapter 7: The Bar

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not Edited ~ Whoops.

Walking out of the church, Joshua felt his whole body practically lighten; His shoulders relaxed, his back straightened, his lungs suddenly felt free. The most blessing feeling though, was everything suddenly felt nice, and cold. The breeze, a welcomed visitor. Joshua was just thankful he no longer had the pressure on his chest, and that the burning sensation on his arms was now gone. Every step he took away from the church Joshua felt himself lose the haze he was in; the time spent in the church practically a blur to him. 

Jeonghan on the other hand, felt every moment add another weight attached to the chains on his ankles, holding him to the church. All the while, his eyes were glued to the back of Joshua’s head. 

Seungcheol had his eyes flashing back and forth between his two boyfriends. His eyebrows furrowed as he watched the two; as one seemed to stumble over air, the other began to float. Himself was trying to concentrate on the information on hand. Their job, although not paid, was definitely going to get them some attention in the papers, or this town at least. The information they received only proved that this was a paranormal sighting, and a tad more no the dangerous side. 

About twenty minutes later, the three had found their way back to the RV. The skies were slowly blending into light pink, and blue hues. Their Rv’s interior was less of a beautiful sight; Jeonghan’s attention jumped to the trash, loose blankets and clothes. They’ve been too preoccupied to take care of their RV, and trust Jeonghan, he would have made the other two clean it up by now if they hadn’t. However the boys still sat themselves down at their RV’s dining table. Joshua curling up into the corner beside the window, Seungcheol beside him, while Jeonghan spread himself across the seat opposite of them. In seconds, Joshua had his laptop out, his eyes narrowing, his fingers twitching excitedly over the keyboard.

“ Alright, summary time.” Joshua announced. Seungcheol’s shoulders lifted at the cheer in the boy’s voice. To be honest, it has been awhile since Seungcheol saw that spark. Recalling their past few weeks, Seungcheol only remembers a need to write, a need to research and a need to learn. Joshua’s obsession was very rarely, if ever as unhealthy as it had been those few weeks. Before, it would be for spurts of time, and by the end he would be completely complicit, happy to turn his attention to something else. But now. 

But now it took a village to detach him from his research, and if you succeed at that, you need an army to distract him from his thoughts. And if you had his attention, the eyes were lackluster. The wanderlust that was there, went on its own trip without their owner. 

So when Seungcheol heard the younger’s voice practically sing about work, Seungcheol thought it was a miracle. Seungcheol’s fingers fiddled with the bind of the bible he was handed. The eldest was not one to quickly make assumptions, but he was always one to put thanks where thanks was do, even if it was a little. 

“ What is it we have to do?” Seungcheol asked, casually wrapping an arm arm the youngest shoulders. Joshua grinned as he glanced at Seungcheol. 

“ We have to organize our information, come up with a plan for the house, but like a better plan than the hotel.” Joshua scrunched up his nose momentarily before quickly pulling out a notebook from thin air. Within a minute, he had sketched out a couple of lists;

1: Boy Used a Ouija Board -> Attracted Demons

2: Kid must have been interested in ghosts… Ghosts prior to Ouija?

3: Church unable to help?

4: House may still be haunted

5: Do we want cameras?

6: Do we want to stay overnight?

7: No more separating. 

8: Demon can touch a bible; How do we interfere?

9: Talk with demons?

Seungcheol nodded at the list, his eyes hovering over number seven, with a fond smile. “ It seems the house has had religious treatments, so we are going to need to be careful. Religious events no matter how successful, and no matter how peaceful a ghost, always ends up annoying the ghosts. I really don’t want to deal with pissed off ghosts, but we will do our best”

“ People should just stick to our way, and things could be fixed so quickly. Go in, figure out the problem, capture it, and done.” Jeonghan mumbled. Joshua’s eyes furrowed as he stared at the other boy. The second eldest had been quiet since leaving the church. 

“ Well I mean,” Joshua started. “ Religious techniques are relatively less immoral.” They’ve had this conversation multiple times, but it was usually Jeonghan reminding Joshua. “ They don’t necessarily kill any of the demons, or entrap them, instead they banish them or force them to leave.” 

Jeonghan shrugged, crossing his arms. “ If they did kill or entrap them, there would be one less demon or ghost to worry about.”

Joshua pouted: The conversation never went passed the first sentence normally. “ Jeonghan, it’s not necessarily fair for the ghosts. I mean they were alive once too and they-,”

“ Are you trying to say you want to go back to religious texts, ‘shua?”

“What? Han, I’m just pointing out that our side has faults too, I thought this was a normal grounding ourselves conversation.” That’s usually what it was; making sure they knew clearly what they were doing. They didn’t kill, they entrapped and sent the ghosts to other facilities for research. Other people in their field however, killing and destroying the pure essence of a ghost was not above them.

“ Want to go back to over analyzing the bible, ‘Shua?” Jeonghan wasn’t listening. “ Want to go back to relying on people who ostracized you?”

The youngest’s eyes widened. “ Hey! That’s uncalled for-,”

“When your only friends were ghosts?”

“Hannie!” Joshua hissed out, his voice however still soft. During the conversation, Seungcheol watched the two with confused eyes. His thumb pressing deeply into Joshua’s shoulder. The youngest was shaking, but his eyes were unmoving. At Jeonghan’s last comment, Seungcheol slammed a hand onto the table. Joshua’s pen rolled onto the floor with a small, tap. 

A moment of silence.

“ Jeonghan!” Seungcheol growled. Jeonghan shut his mouth. “ What is going on? Why are you snapping at Joshua?”

“ I’m not snapping at Joshua.” Jeonghan barked back, eyes narrowing. 

Seungcheol scoffed. “ What just happened then?”

Jeonghan turned his head, staring at the driver seat, shrugging. “ I dunno.” The boy sighed, and turned his head back to face the other two. “ I’m not mad at you Joshua.”

Joshua’s eyes were focused on the corner of the window. 

“ Really I’m not. I’m just,” Jeonghan breathed in deeply. “ Thinking about how the church here couldn’t do anything for that kid. I’m blaming the church, and getting mad at the church.” Hesitantly, Jeonghan moved his hand out to grab Joshua’s. The youngest’s fingers curled in, rejecting him. “ Not you. I’m not mad at you. Never you.” 

“Not everyone who read the bible are bad people, Hannie” Joshua mumbled. “ And sometimes they do good work.”

Jeonghan nodded, moving his gaze to Seungcheol. The oldest male greeted his gaze with a comforting smile. Seungcheol’s eyes quickly motioned to the uncurled fingers on the table, and with a quick nod of the head Jeonghan understood. The second eldest, intertwined their fingers. “ Yeah, sometimes they do good.” 

“ I said good work.” Joshua groaned, as he looked back at Jeonghan. 

“ But they still do good.” 

And there it was, the soft smile Jeonghan loves. 

Seungcheol inhaled softly, before grinning at the two of them. “ Alright!” The two other males looked at him. “ I have decided we are not going to the house tonight!” 

Joshua gasped. “ What? Why?!” 

Jeonghan chuckled, but kept his eyes set on Seungcheol. “ Yeah, why?”

“ None of us are in the mood, or the mindset to focus on this tonight-,”

“Speak for yourself, we just started!” Joshua whined. His voice caused Seungcheol to tighten his hold on the younger, and press his lips gently against his temple. 

“Yeah, but we have had a long day. Interviewing people, and the church all while walking in the hot sun. Why not go to a bar tonight?”

Jeonghan’s head perked up. “ I’m all for going to the bar.” 

However, Joshua seemed little reluctant. Noticing this, Seungcheol curled his fingers under Joshua’s chin, lifting it to face him. 

“ You can have some time alone if you want,” Seungcheol suggested. “ You get this whole RV to yourself for the next couple of hours, and get to do all your little experiments.” The eldest nuzzled his nose into the youngest. “ And Jeonghan and I will have our own little night out at the bar.”

Jeonghan gently rubbed his thumb against Joshua’s hand. “ We promise not to do anything too fun without you.” Jeonghan smiled when he watched Joshua’s eyes turn towards him, his chin slightly pulling away from Seungcheol. 

Seungcheol smiled, and spread his palm against the younger’s cheek to keep the boy facing him. “ Before you think too much about Jeonghan’s teasing, I need a confirmation from you.”

“A confirmation?” Joshua asked. Seungcheol’s hand felt warm on his cheek, perfectly placed. 

“ Do you want to be alone tonight? Of course, if you don’t, Jeonghan and I will happily grab some take out and we can curl up on the bed.”

“ And we can watch some Sci-fi movie you love.” Jeonghan added. The youngest’s eyebrows curled in confusion. 

Slowly, Joshua moved his free hand to grab the one Seungcheol had placed on his cheek. He brought it away from his skin - he only slightly regretted that action- and held it to the table. “ Why is this suddenly all about me today?”

Seungcheol and Jeonghan exchanged looks, that seemed to mimic the question. Jeonghan’s own eyebrows furrowed as he looked out the window, as if it would give him the answers. Seungcheol chewed on his bottom lip. Suddenly, Jeonghan gripped Joshua’s hand tighter, pulling it towards him. Shocked, Joshua stared doe-eyed at the other boy.

“ Is that a bad thing?” 

Joshua hesitantly shook his head. “ No, but you are also having a bad day… I think.”

“ And not working for a night, would be enough for me. It would be better to know that you got to relax too, though. You don’t have to feel guilty for not wanting to do what we want to do.” 

“I don’t feel guilty.” He denied.

“ If you don’t want to go to the bar, don’t worry about telling us.” Seungcheol stated. “ You seem to forget that.”

The youngest shrugged, avoiding all eye contact. A moment passed, and Joshua finally nodded his head. Content with the response, the three cleaned themselves up for the night; It’s been a hot summer recently. 

“We’re going. We will be back in like three hours.” Jeonghan announced. Joshua had himself curled up under blankets in the bedroom, his gadgets spread across the sheets, in what he swears is an organized fashion. A head set already placed on his head, one ear free. 

“ Take the key, I may crash before you get back.” Joshua responded. Seungcheol coughed out a small laugh, only to wave it away when he noticed Joshua’s jokingly, offended look. 

Jeonghan however, did grab the key as he walked out the door, intertwining his fingers with Seungcheol’s. Joshua watched them walk out and close the door to the RV, before he put his attention back to the work in front of him. Before they left, he had convinced the other two he was going to do minimal research, take the night off of the event on hand, and focus on something else. As he spoke with them though, Joshua knew that the research was not minimal in the least. 

Thirty minutes into his night alone, Joshua found the house and the basic layout of the said house. He sketched a basic outline into his notebooks, before searching for updated information on the rooms and interior. To his luck, there were multiple reports on the house, some less popular blogs talking about the events happening there; Each of these included some -most likely illegally taken- photos. Many of the rooms had a tint of vignette on the corners, forcing the viewers to see them as creepier than they actually were. Joshua made sure to save every single one onto his laptop and add any minute detail into his sketched out version. He noted the cracks in walls, and darker corners.

As he gazed at the photos he felt the house was lacking the spine-tingling creeps they would get everywhere else. 

When they would work, more times than not, the places would scream ghosts, or demons. It was easy to tell if the ghost was friendly, distressed, revengeful etc. This house though, was so normal. The walls were off white, with accented blue lines here and there. The floors were mostly carpeted withe exceptions of the kitchen and bathrooms. There were three bedrooms, two of them upstairs, and one downstairs in the back. The two upstairs belonged to the child it seemed, and a guest respectively. The bedroom on the first floor, naturally belonged to the parents, and was decorated scarcely. Joshua wondered if they were planning to stay there for a long time. 

After mapping out as much as he could, Joshua opened up a few more tabs. He researched articles from a year ago, three years ago, five years ago and so on. The house was boring to say the least. Most people stayed there for two three years, and moved out usually due to job promotions. It seemed to always be up for sale. There were occasionally an article or two about random voices, missing items, and sights of strangers in their house. Many of these cases were believed to be random thieves or mischievous high schoolers. 

Pouting, Joshua clicked through a few more articles, focusing on keywords, only to find nothing new. His eyes flickered to his notebook, and he picked it up carefully by its binding; The notebook was old. It was brown leather, old, scratched up and tattered. The pages were filled with every case the three of them had ever done together, and the research he did before they even met. The young boy fiddled with the last three empty pages, heart sinking when he realized he would have to get a new one soon. 

Then the wind brushed the pages to flip over into the contents, landing on the page with the newest list. Joshua’s eyes focused in on the first note: The child had used a ouija board. That’s the missing factor. In a second, Joshua was searching up Ouija boards, and their rules. 

More times than not, Joshua learned, ouija boards attracted evil ghosts, looking for a gate to the living world. It worked as a door, one that let ghosts easily interact with those who were alive. A ouija board had rules though, rules to make sure the ghosts never crossed over through the wrong doors. Fingers were to be kept attached to it the whole time until there was a clear message of goodbye, so there is never a break in contact. The fingers, if they were to let go without ending the conversation, leaves the gate open, and not only does it no longer have to look for a host but is free to move around. You ask if anyone is here, because the living are now one foot in the grave, and it is not their grave. You must be careful to never overstep. You say goodbye, because ghosts are often bound by agreements mostly. Of course there are those who do not care, who will cause pain and suffering, but they can’t possess you. 

Joshua wondered if the last part was true, but people rarely had good experiences with a ouija board, usually because of their idiocy of letting go. 

Joshua hated the word goodbye, so he doesn’t blame them that much. 

An hour had passed, and Joshua found himself watching people on youtube playing with the ouija board; Joshua wonders why it is treated as a game when it is so dangerous. However as he watched, he felt his fingers twitching once more on the keyboard. He sighed. His body was getting antsy. He began to fiddle with the equipment spread across the bed, however the need to work had yet to be relinquished. With a groan, Joshua slipped out of the bed, his hand suddenly feeling a burning sensation. Snapping his hand back to his side, Joshua accusingly turned his head to glare at the culprit of the burn. He thought it would have been a metal piece he left to long in the sun, but instead it was the bible. The boy’s nose crinkled in confusion, before he shrugged it off. 

The burning sensation did not in fact, distract him from his body suddenly aching, and the random cold winds chilling his body. Joshua slipped a pair of socks onto his feet, followed by a pair of sneakers. The boy would swear later, the next few minutes were in a haze and he couldn’t remember anything that happened. The next thing he remembers is finding himself at the footsteps of the haunted house they traveled so long to find. A heavy backpack hanging loosely on his right shoulder. His shoulders had eased a bit, and his fingers seemed to have relax.

But as Joshua stood there, he found he couldn’t remember how he got there. He glanced over his shoulder, wondering if he had driven there, but the RV was no where to be seen. Nervously, Joshua brushed a couple of strands behind his ear and stared back up at the house. 

‘It was bigger in person,’ Joshua thought. ‘ I’m here anyway, might as well.’

Gently, the boy knocked on the empty house’s door. No response.

He glanced around, trying to spot any watching eyes, before trying to push the front door open. It was closed.

Annoyed, Joshua looked around, finding a closed window. He pressed his face against it, analyzing the rooms he could see. Luckily, he spotted a slightly cracked window on the side. In a hurry, the boy marched down the stairs and around the side. When he spotted the window, he tried pushing it up but it wouldn’t budge any wider. And then he blinked, and there was glass everywhere, the window broken. Confused, Joshua stared at through the broken window. A rock was rolling on the inside. The young boy rapidly twisted his head around wondering where it came from, only to be greeted with the whistling of the wind. Pursing his lips, Joshua accepted the random invitation. As he pressed his hands on the window sill, ready to push himself up, he noticed dirt covering his fingers. 

‘Did I do that?’ Joshua asked himself. The thought quickly vanished from his mind though, and he climbed through the window, accepting the couple of cuts on his clothes from the broken glass. 

He stumbled slightly, when his feet hit tiled ground. His backpack weighed him down slightly. His hands reached for the kitchen counter before he fully gained his balance. Taking the journal out of his backpack, Joshua congratulated himself on a pretty well down map of the interior. As he began to walk out of the kitchen, Joshua heard the crunch of glass under his shoes. 

Joshua thought about cleaning it up, but the thought never became an action. 

As he walked around he found the main hall; The front door leading right to a long hallway and a staircase at the center, leading to the second floor. Doors and archways on either side welcomed you to stray off path. Joshua noted the dark blue carpet leading to and on the staircase. Stepping on it, he gazed at it thoughtfully; The color matched Jeonghan well in Joshua’s humble opinion. 

Casually, Joshua strolled around the house, fascinated by the left over boxes and furniture that the family decided not to move. In the corner of his eye, a smoky figure moved. Joshua spun on his heel, only to see nothing there. Nodding, but not sure why, Joshua continued to adventure around. After taking in all that he could downstairs, he began to make his way up the stairs. His fingers grazing the banister as he walked. When he hit the middle step, Joshua suddenly felt the world spin. His hand desperately grabbed the banister as a foot slipped. Another figure seemed to disappear into a wall as Joshua stumbled on the stairs. The young boy gripped his head tightly, suddenly feeling something pounding against his temple. His vision, doubled, no tripled. The concept of up and down suddenly non-existent. 

Feeling like he was falling into Wonderland, Joshua’s mind screamed to get out. However his feet struggled to find the right footing. His eyes flashed to corner, to corner, to corner. His lungs felt compressed, every breath becoming more and more difficult. Cold winds brushed against his skin, to the point Joshua thought there were goosebumps. His eyes made contact with a white door, and Joshua found himself focusing in on it. It was the front door.

It was freedom. 

Joshua ignored the feeling of imminent death with every step, a weight off his shoulder when his foot his ground and not air. However, he suddenly felt a tug. Glancing back,Joshua recognized his arm still attached to the bannister. He tried tugging it off, only to watch his own hand defy him. His fingers curling into the wood, almost digging holes into it. Joshua’s other hand clawed at the back of his hand, desperately. 

Suddenly the pounding of the head was back. Joshua curled up on a step, hand still attached. Tears prickling the corner of his eyes. He opened his mouth to cry out, but a different sound escaped; an unknown voice.

“Don’t.” 

It was deep, unusually deep, scratchy. His voice echoed throughout the halls, repeatedly entering Joshua’s ears, as if it was a mantra. Terrified, Joshua brought his free hand up to his mouth, covering it. His heart was beating out of his chest, he could feel a bead of sweat racing down his cheek, but what was sweat and what were tears was lost to Joshua at this point. He tried to scream once more, letting his hand drop, only to find himself muted. The ringing of the male’s voice forcing it’s way into his mind. Joshua curled his knees into him, his free arm wrapping around them tightly. Closing his eyes, he sobbed silently. 

And then his fingers let go of the banister. 

 

“Joshua.” Jeonghan said. Seungcheol glanced up at him curiously, his Jack and coke sliding down the back of his throat. “ I want to talk about Joshua.” 

The two had made it to the bar. It was small, a few pool tables with a long table, but it was comfortable. However, while the first thirty minutes were fun and games, ( Jeonghan’s playful “ we could have had sex on the beach if you didn’t bring us here” was his most prideful moment) Jeonghan’s face had quickly turned serious when the drinks arrived. He was quiet for a couple of moments, taking sips of his Black Russian (White Russian was Joshua’s drink of choice, if forced to go out.) and Seungcheol had let it happen. He wouldn’t push. Pushing Jeonghan rarely worked. Pushing Jeonghan can cause Jeonghan to go silent, refusing to speak for a week. It wasn’t a cold shoulder, not at all. It was worse: Jeonghan would be scared to talk. And Seungcheol refused to risk that now a days. Even if he had to wait for an eternity in this bar, he’d wait, if only to have Jeonghan talk to him comfortably. 

“ I’m worried about him.” Jeonghan muttered. Seungcheol nodded, cueing he was listening. Jeonghan smiled at him, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “ I just, the church and the things the priest said. And the boy said Joshua was like him.”

“Technically the boy asked Joshua if he was similar to him. There was no admittance either. Kid was scared.” Seungcheol corrected, even though he had no clue where the conversation was going. Jeonghan’s eyes zoomed in on the ice in his drink. He shuffled the glass around, the ice crinkling. 

“ The specifics don’t matter. The point is,” Jeonghan grumbled. “ That something is going on with Joshua and it is very similar to the kid.”

Seungcheol raised an eyebrow, taking another sip of his drink. “ What do you mean?” 

Jeonghan breathed in deeply, and reached a hand to the back of his neck. He massaged the healing scars silently for a few seconds, avoiding all eye contact with Seungcheol. Jeonghan knew he had to tell him, should have told him. But as he looked into Seungcheol’s eyes he saw curiosity, and concern. He saw protectiveness and rationalism. He saw love but also anger. He saw a boy who would put his life on the line for his loved ones, who wouldn’t even blink to put himself in the line of fire. He saw a boy who would become desperate to do what Jeonghan has been trying to do all by himself: help Joshua. And these are all traits he loves but when it comes to Joshua, Seungcheol loses his rational sense to his protectiveness. His curiosity would be gone, and would only feel concerned. His anger and love, would equal out. 

But, Jeonghan knew he had to tell someone. 

“ Joshua didn’t faint at the museum.” Jeonghan started. In his peripheral vision, Jeonghan could see Seungcheol’s eyes furrow in confusion. “ I mean, well he did, just that’s not all.” 

Seungcheol placed the Jack and Coke on the counter, but his attention was still on the other boy. “What happened Jeonghan?” His voice was still soft, Jeonghan noted.

“ I don’t exactly know.” Jeonghan admitted, his fingers fiddling with the cold glass. “ I just, okay. When Joshua hadn’t come down after the Religious Roundtable (The name of the Catholic Exorcism troop they had met at the Museum), I went to check on him right?”

“ Yeah,” Seungcheol agreed. 

“ I went upstairs and,” Jeonghan started. Seungcheol’s eyes fully focused on his face, reading every muscle movement, every flicker of the eyelids, every pull of his lips, every inhale.

And so Jeonghan told him. Jeonghan told him about walking into the room and having to freeze at the door. He tells him about seeing a boy who he is praying, to gods he questions actually exists, is not in fact their boyfriend. He tells him how when he saw the boy turn around, the eyes that adorned the soft face, were ones of a murderer. 

The memory so vivid in Jeonghan’s head, as if he had been living through it everyday, and in his dreams he had. The museum was a relatively nice size, had a bout five main exhibits, one of them changing ever couple of months to keep interest. The second floor had a gorgeous- Joshua’s words- layout of dinosaur bones. The youngest male had also described the difference between the centuries, but Jeonghan would never remember the differences. The rooms were painted a shade of auburn, with oak wood placed as separators. 

Jeonghan re-accounts how he walked into the room, taking soft steps to the boy in the corner of the room, and whispered Joshua’s names like a chant. From a distance, the hair still looked so soft, so welcoming. But the sneer on the boy’s lips was anything but. It made Jeonghan stall, his feet struggling to freeze along with the rest of his body. When it opened it’s mouth, Jeonghan expected the soft voice of his boyfriend, the voice that would casually sing lullabies as he slept, or mumbled words from his stories hoping it would bring the tale to life. He was expecting maybe an apology, or maybe he was expecting just his name to be uttered with the beautiful pink lips. He was only really expecting the voice to be Joshua’s. Instead, he received a voice hitting decimals he didn’t know a human could reach. The voice had a scratch, as if it was almost painful for the vocal chords to tolerate such voice. It held power though, lots of power. It bounced off of the walls, destroying any other sound near him. Jeonghan wondered if he covered his ears, would he be able to hear his own breathing.

He doubted it. 

But when Jeonghan didn’t move away, the voice repeated its order; “ Get . Out.” 

Jeonghan couldn’t though. Jeonghan couldn’t take his eyes off of the boy huddled in the corner, hands clawing at the walls, occasionally hovering over his skin, only to be forced back to the walls. He stared into the lifeless eyes, pupils dilated, veins strained, and he noticed the very quick, but clearly evident, flash of fear in the eyes. It was that, that forced Jeonghan to glue his feet to the ground. 

“Joshua.” Jeonghan repeated, taking a hesitant step forward, reaching out gently. The movement caused the boy to hiss and curl up into the corner farther. “Joshua, it’s Jeonghan.” 

“ Stay. Away.” The voice growled. Jeonghan flinched at the sound, it was inhuman. 

“I’m not going to stay away, Joshua.” Jeonghan didn’t care if the Joshua was aware of what was going on, but making sure the boy knew he wasn’t going to leave was the most important thing. He took another step forward, holding both arms out as an invitation. 

Hands reached out, and Jeonghan almost thought it was accepting a hug, but with a quick judgment Jeonghan swerved to the left. Joshua jumped out from the corner, slashing the air Jeonghan was just moments before. 

“Joshua. Love, it’s Jeonghan.” He said softly, watching the boy claw at the ground in frustration. “ Love, look at me again.”

The boy’s hands reached into his own hair, pulling at it harshly. In a second, Jeonghan was at the boy’s side and grabbing his wrists, pulling them away from the strands of hair. The moment his fingers touched Joshua’s skin, the boy cried out. When he began to thrash in his hold, Jeonghan let go of the boy quickly. Joshua stumbled away, before spinning around, his eyes boring holes right behind Jeonghan. Confused, Jeonghan glanced behind him to see nothing. He didn’t waste more than a second pondering the gaze before looking at the boy again. 

“ Joshua, Joshua. Are you there?” Jeonghan asked, stepping closer to the boy. The boy froze, the flash of fear passing through his eyes again. “ Joshua. Seungcheol is down stairs, do you want me to get him?”

Jeonghan would never know if that was the wrong thing to say, but no matter, the boy lunged once more at him. As Jeonghan shuffled to the side, he felt a claw catch his shirt- Joshua always cut his nails perfectly, timely. The older boy turned to see the younger ready to pounce again. Right as the boy jumped forward, Jeonghan wrapped an arm around the boy’s waist, keeping his hands on parts that were clothed. As the boy thrashed, his arms would touch Jeonghan’s eliciting a cry. 

“ I’m sorry.” Jeonghan whispered. The younger’s back was pressed against his chest, and Jeonghan held on for dear life. The boy occasionally would try ripping the older’s arms off of him, only to let out a painful scream. “I’m so sorry, come back to me Joshua.”

Hands flew everywhere, trying to claw Jeonghan’s face. As a response, Jeonghan buried his face into the other’s hair, whispering “I Love you’s” and apologies to no end. He heard something crack slightly, and felt three sharp objects dig into the back of his neck,dragging the objects along the back for a few seconds. To end it, Jeonghan had moved a hand onto one of Joshua’s arms. The boy flinched so hard the nails detached from his neck. Breathing in deeply, Jeonghan maneuvered Joshua around to face him. His face scrunched up in disgust as he forced Joshua’s shoulder back in place, this however did not seem to be painful for the boy in front of him. “I’m sorry.” Jeonghan whispered. The boy in front of him growled, stretching his arms out to Jeonghan’s neck. “What did I do wrong?” Jeonghan asked.

Right as the fingers touched his throat, Jeonghan had the boy’s forearms in a tight grip. He closed his eyes, trying to forget the pain on the boy’s face. He spun the boy around once more, having the back against his chest, and crossing the forearms across Joshua’s. He dropped him and the boy to the ground, holding the boy between his legs. The boy let out deep screams, pained screams, revengeful screams in his grip, but Joshua refused to let go. 

He let the deep voice curse to the wind, and let every word make their way into his ears. He let every cry implant itself into his memory. He let himself tighten the grip every time the boy tried to shuffle out. 

And then, Jeonghan could hear the birds singing, and felt the boy in his arms still. Jeonghan leaned over the boy’s shoulder, loosening his grip on the arms slightly, to see Joshua’s face: It was at peace. His head hung low, hair blocking Jeonghan’s view slightly, but Jeonghan could see the sense of peace on the face. The lips were parted slightly, eyes closed gently, and there wasn’t even a single wrinkle. With a shaky breath, Jeonghan let go of Joshua’s arms, and instead wrapped the younger boy up in a tight hug, holding him. “I’m sorry.” Jeonghan whispered one last time. 

“ And then I brought him downstairs to you.” Jeonghan finished. The ice had melted in his glass.

Seungcheol’s face was blank, as he stared at his second Jack and coke. “ You told me you guys had a small fight, and he fainted from exhaustion.”

“ Yeah, I mean. He did faint from exhaustion. At least I think he did.” Jeonghan mumbled. The second eldest listened to the heavy breathing of the boy beside him. 

“ Why didn’t you tell me what actually happened.” 

Jeonghan shrugged. 

“ You don’t get to shrug this one off, Hannie.” Seungcheol stated, side eyeing the other boy. “Joshua was in legit pain, and you didn’t tell me. He could still be in pain.”

“ I know, I know.”

“Jeonghan.” Seungcheol started, but Jeonghan interrupted.  
“ I said I know!” Jeonghan groaned, slamming his glass against the table slightly. “ I don’t know. It was just so much. I went upstairs for Joshua, and within minutes his hands were centimeters away from my throat. I wanted to tell you, but I was still trying to figure out what to say. And,”

“And?”

“And the Religious Roundtable was still there. I don’t know, I blame them, or I blamed them. I don’t know the cause to be honest. And you were stressed about the screaming! I had yet to figure out what had happened, and what else was I supposed to tell you Cheolie?”

“The truth Han.”

“ I didn’t know what the truth was!” Jeonghan hissed out, glaring at Seungcheol. “ Joshua, for a few moments, wanted me dead and I didn’t know why. How do I just tell you that?”

There was silence between the two. Jeonghan broke it. “ You were so scared Seungcheol, that he was injured. You were scared I was injured. You barely let me have a word in as it was… it just, I thought telling you later would be better.” 

“Later didn’t happen though.”

“I know. Because Joshua woke up, and I didn’t want him to know.”

“Why not?”

Jeonghan shrugged. “ How would you take it if I told you, you tried to kill me?”

Seungcheol chewed on the inside of his cheek as he took another sip of his drink. “Better than Joshua probably would have.”

“Exactly. Besides, it seemed like everything was alright, I mean besides being more obsessive than normal.”

Seungcheol nodded. “ I noticed that too.”

“Yeah.” Jeonghan confirmed, taking in a deep breath. “Yeah, and then everything started to spiral starting with the kid. I don’t know Cheolie. I’m so sorry for not telling you.”

Seungcheol chuckled, it wasn’t filled with amusement, but there was not any essence of irritation. It sounded tired. “Don’t apologize Hannie.” He placed his hand onto of Jeonghan’s, squeezing it gently. “ You were under stress.”

Jeonghan swallowed thickly, his hand quickly squeezing the other boy’s hand back. As Seungcheol finished off his second glass, Jeonghan looked at him curious, and concerned eyes. Seungcheol raised an eyebrow; “What?”

“What would you have done?”

“What would I have done about what?” Seungcheol asked.

Jeonghan’s eyes avoided his gaze. “ Did I do the right thing? Would you have held onto Joshua? He was in so much pain, I’m scared to touch him sometimes since then.” He confessed, tears swimming in the corner of his eyes. “What would you have done, if you were me?”

Seungcheol’s hand lifted before falling lifelessly to his lap. “ I don’t know,” He started. “ I wouldn’t be able to handle the screams. I can’t handle hearing either of you in pain really. I would’ve done anything to stop you or him from screaming, stop you from being in pain.”

“Anything?”

Seungcheol was waving down the bartender for the third glass as he spoke; “ Probably would have let him kill me.” 

 

Seungcheol would confess, he was slightly tipsy when they headed back to the RV. He had a bubble in his chest, trying to escape through occasional giggles. Jeonghan had an arm wrapped around his waist, although not necessarily necessary, Seungcheol still says it felt nice. 

Especially nice because it was Jeonghan’s arm. 

It was Jeonghan’s arm on his waist. 

His waist. 

Seungcheol squealed at the thought leaning against the other boy, causing Jeonghan to stumble slightly. “What the fuck?” Jeonghan asked, readjusting his grip on Seungcheol’s waist. The older boy refused to give an actual response. “Tonight was supposed to be a fun night for both of us. Instead you went and got drunk on like eight jack and cokes, and hear I am already sober from my Black Russian.”

“Should have gotten a White Russian.” Seungcheol announced, poking the younger’s cheek childishly. “ It gets you drunk faster.”

“Only because of the cream, it tastes better.” Jeonghan argued. “That’s why Joshua drinks it.”

It’s true, Joshua was not a fan of alcohol. If he wanted to get tipsy with his boyfriends, he would choose a White Russian to get drunk with, or a Tootsie Roll. However a Tootsie Roll didn’t sound as adult as the other did. Jeonghan would tease hime every time he ordered it. 

Finally reaching the RV, Seungcheol separated from the boy. His arms lazily flapping in the air above his head. “ Joshuuuuuaaaaa~!” Seungcheol sang, stepping straight into the RV. There wasn’t a door, as if he floated through the walls like a ghost.

Something was wrong.

“Why is the door open?” Jeonghan asked, and the moment he stepped in a tingle went down his spine. “Joshua, why is the door open?” 

Seungcheol had seated himself on the table, legs crossed. Jeonghan spun around in the RV, seeing cabinets flung open, objects lazily thrown around. The bed, empty. The driver seat, empty. The dining table bench, empty. He saw the blankets in a mess.

“Where the fuck is Joshua?” Jeonghan cursed, flinging around to make eye contact with Seungcheol. The question seemed to have sobered him up, if even only a little.

“ Call him, now.” Seungcheol ordered. 

Jeonghan had the phone out before he could finish.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hola!! 
> 
> This update is coming sooner rather than later. Honestly, I should be working on my final paper and not on this, but I had the urge to write it. I'm honestly proud of this chapter; It is one of the better written ones, even if it is less pages... Anyway! Now that I have influenced your opinion, what do you think of this chapter? It's probably a lot more straightforward than the others too...
> 
> Also, this is not related to the story: Everyone who has graduated college these past few days, and future days, I want to say congratulations! I Am so proud of you! Those who will be graduating High school soon, that is incredible! Those who are finding work and getting that income, I am so impressed!!! 
> 
>  
> 
> I am currently living in Asia, hence the weird times I post, but I will be moving within a month to a different continent (Because this is my life and I for some reason agreed to it) So, if my posts become weirdly timed it is because I am balancing finals here in Asia, and preparing to move. I apologize for any inconvenience.
> 
> And finally, I hope to read all of your comments and ideas on this chapter! I like hearing your theories, or feelings when you read it. It honestly helps me as a writer, hearing other people as interested in the story as I am. 
> 
> Thank you again for your patience and interest, 
> 
> V.AY


	9. Chapter 8: Joshua PT 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> To be honest, Seungcheol was actually the first one to meet the boy. It was a heroic tale, as Seungcheol liked to tell it. Joshua never denied it, Jeonghan would occasionally play along. Their opinions didn’t change the fact that Seungcheol did in fact always feel the need to help those in need, without any context ever. Jeonghan was mighty thankful for that, but he still wished it would have changed after Joshua.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not edited! Sorry! Don't hate me.

Jeonghan had dialed Joshua’s number numerous time, and each try was unsuccessful. The failure didn’t stop him as he started to leave angry messages on Joshua’s voicemail. Seungcheol was swaying as he stared at the mess of a bed, some equipment even on the floor. The Koala from the carnival squished between the wall and the door frame. Hesitantly, the eldest walked over to it. Lifting it up, he noticed scratch marks on the right paw. He bit his lip as he gently rubbed his thumb over the koala bear. He fiddled with it for a few more seconds, until he heard Jeonghan’s voice begin to waver with every word. He turned around to see the other gripping his phone harshly with both hands, close to his mouth. The younger boy’s lips were shaking as he struggled to criticize the youngest boyfriend. 

“ You can’t just fucking leave like that josh.” The boy was hissing out, tears in the corner of his eyes. “ I will fucking kill you when I find you. I will, I will, I will….fucking r-r-rip you to shreds, and, a-and find your ghost, spirit shit thing of a dead b-being, and turn you into pure ectoplasm.” 

When the voicemail was saved, Jeonghan was already pressing Joshua’s phone number again. Seungcheol breathed in deeply before moving to the other boy’s side. The elder’s fingers wrapped around the phone and gently tore it away from the younger. He hung up, and slid the phone into his own back pocket. 

“ Hannie, it’s okay.” Seungcheol comforted. His voice soft. “ He’s going to be okay, just like at the carnival. He probably got distracted, found some specimen of rock or-,”

“ He finds rocks boring… it’s the only thing he finds boring.” Jeonghan spat out. His eyes cold as he stared at the elder. “ And it’s not okay Seungcheol. This isn’t like the carnival. I have no idea where the fuck he is!” 

“ I know, I know. What I’m-,” 

“ No. What I am saying is, I may have caught you up on Joshua’s demon life, but you have no idea why it is so fucking terrifying for him to be gone. IN THIS TOWN!” Jeonghan exclaimed, one of his hands grabbing Seungcheol’s shoulders tightly. “ How am I supposed to find him in a town?! He’s not answering his phone! He could have gone demon or something. Seungcheol, where the fuck is he?!”

“ I don’t know, but it’ll be okay. He could have went out real quickly. He’ll be back.” 

“ You. Don’t. Know. That.”

“ But I know Joshua.”

Jeonghan’s back straightened, shoulders squared. His teeth fiddled with his lip, ready to speak a few words, one that Seungcheol was prepared to have to ignore. The eldest knew the words were going to be ones Jeonghan would regret, cry over and apologize for, so the older had braced himself, curling his fingers tightly. However, the younger dropped his shoulders, the thought fleeting. “ But Joshua… Joshua isn’t Joshua anymore.” 

Seungcheol watched the younger’s eyes for a few seconds, reading them as the light bounced off his irises. “ No, Joshua is still Joshua, just like when you are mad, you are still Jeonghan, when I get scared I am still Seungcheol. What’s going on with him is just, what would he call it, an inconvenience?” Jeonghan rolled his eyes. “ It’s just a bump in the road, and we will fix it, like we fix everything.”

“ But we need Joshua to fix it.”

Seungcheol agreed. “ Yes, we need Joshua.”

Seungcheol had bowed his head, shame creeping up his spine. “ How do we find Joshua?”

“ Like I said, Joshua is still the same. What would have caused him to leave his electronics behind, with or without a demon confusing him?”

There was a only a second pause until the two of them simultaneously spoke; “ Haunted House.” The two rushed out of their RV in moments.

Before leaving Jeonghan glanced at the messy kitchen; The moment he had walked in and saw the craziness that had taken place, Jeonghan already knew. When he saw the bed, he had assumed the worst. When Joshua did not pick up the phone, Jeonghan felt the floor ready to give way. Seungcheol didn’t know, didn’t understand what the demon would do, didn’t understand what Joshua would do. The youngest male would lose control, like the kid did. He would go on random rampages of breaking equipment, their apartment, and then he would wake up and remember none of it. Seungcheol didn’t understand this. Jeonghan saw Joshua fight it, saw him sit up in the middle of the night staring into nothing for an hour before falling asleep. Jeonghan saw Joshua’s hands twitch. Joshua thought it was a need to research. Jeonghan however, knew it was the demon trying to take over.

And Joshua had no idea. 

Jeonghan wondered if it was smart not telling the youngest boy, but he still refused to speak the truth to him. How do you tell someone that their humanity is sleeping between their fingers, as their dreams change from studying the dead to becoming one?

Jeonghan didn’t know, and refused to use the wrong method in doing so. 

Seungcheol had suggested they drive to the house, bring their equipment just in case. Jeonghan hastily disagreed, grabbing Seungcheol’s arm and dragging him with him as they walked to their destination; Jeonghan didn’t want work to come up. He didn’t want to give anyone an excuse in ignoring what had just happened. He wanted to get in, get Joshua, get out. Car may have been faster to get there, but he knew his boys. He knew they would decide to work that night, but Jeonghan was ready to punch them both if they even mentioned work. 

As they walked, Seungcheol slipped his arm out of his grip, and instead curled his fingers around Jeonghan’s. They walked in silence for a miles, and only when they reached their house did the quiet break. Jeonghan sighed, walking up to the front door, and twisted the knob.

“It’s locked.”Jeonghan groaned, dragging a hand down his face. “ Did he not come here?”

“Nah, he came here.” Seungcheol announced. Confused, Jeonghan glanced at the elder who was looking through the window into the house. The second eldest also looked through the glass to see a broken window in the distance, glass shattered across a kitchen floor. 

“ That could be old Cheollie.” Jeonghan noted, shrugging his shoulders. “ Besides, Joshua wouldn’t break in, even if it was for work.” Jeonghan felt his back tingle at the words. He sighed. “…or maybe he would.”

“ Let’s go check it out. Maybe Joshua didn’t, maybe he did. Checking it out won’t hurt us.”

“Famous last words.” Jeonghan muttered, but still trudged along to the side of the house. With some help from Seungcheol, Jeonghan climbed through the window first, brushing away stray glass before letting Seungcheol even think of climbing in. 

When the two landed on the kitchen floor, the two glanced around. Although they both knew it was an abandoned, or rather a house up for sale, it was still weird with the lack of decorations. Slightly distracted, the two walked into the hallway, randomly checking the rooms. Their hands once again connected by the pinkies. As they turned once more, the two froze. In front of them, was Joshua. 

His body was flat against the ground, a hand reaching out, away from the stairs. Seungcheol glanced over at the direction, to see nothing but a tan wall. Jeonghan however spirited right to the boy’s side. He turned the boy over, raising his head slightly. 

“ Joshua, hey Joshua. Wake up.” Jeonghan ordered, shaking a limp hand rashly. Seungcheol took a few steps over, watching the youngest boyfriend’s eyes stay shut, but air pass through his lips. It was with that, that had Seungcheol’s shoulders falling, and a breath finally escaping his own lips. Jeonghan on the other hand, held the boy’s hand tighter, waving it around dangerously. “ Wake the fuck up.” 

“Hannie, he’s okay. He’s breathing.”

Jeonghan’s face twisted around to stare daggers into the eldest’s soul. “ Good. He’ll wish he was dead when he wakes up.”

Seungcheol raised an eyebrow, shaking his head. “ I’m not quite understanding the logic, but just be careful with him when he wakes up.”

Jeonghan curled the youngest boyfriend’s face into the second eldest’s own chest, a hand curling into the hair protectively . “ Hiss.” 

“Did, did you just hiss at me?”

Jeonghan shrugged before holding the younger tighter against himself. “ Wake up before I kill you.” 

“I really don’t think threats are-,” Seungcheol mumbled, only to freeze as he watched Joshua’s body twitch awake. “‘Shua!” 

The boy’s face turned away from Jeonghan, and the two elder males watched as his eyes fluttered open. “That’s me?” 

A content smile formed onto Seungcheol’s lips. “Yeah, that’s you buddy.” 

Slowly, Joshua began to sit up with Jeonghan’s arms still wrapped tightly around him. One of his hands slowly lifted itself to pat the side of his head, he winced slightly as he fingers brushed over a bump. “ Oh.” He mumbled. 

“No.” Jeonghan growled out. Joshua blinked before turning his head to stare at the boy cradling him. 

“No?” Joshua asked.

“Yeah, no?” Seungcheol repeated. 

“Yeah. No.” Jeonghan groaned. The second eldest manhandled the young boy until he was kneeling in front of Jeonghan, the two now on eye level. He held the youngest’s shoulders tightly, glaring into the younger’s eyes. “ You don’t get to just wake up again and be completely forgiven.”

“Hannie, maybe he should rest a bit before-,”

“No!” Jeonghan yelled, his fingers digging a bit into Joshua’s shoulders. When the youngest male’s eyes wavered nervously, Jeonghan eased his grip. “ You can’t keep doing this Joshua.”

Joshua bit his lip, his gaze wandering over to the wall beside them. “ Keep doing what?”

“ Leaving, and then getting into some sort of trouble. Like what the fuck Joshua?!”

Something seemed to click in Joshua’s mind, for his eyes traveled back to Jeonghan’s. “ What do you mean? When do I just wander off and get into trouble?”

“ Well today for instance!” Jeonghan sputtered, a hand waving around hysterically as if emphasizing his point. Joshua shrugged the other hand off of him, maneuvering himself to sit cross legged. 

“ Besides today Hannie.”

“At the carnival-,”

“ I didn’t even get into trouble.” Joshua scoffed, crossing his arms. “ You got all spidey-senses and ran out looking for me. Nothing. Even. Happened. Except for maybe playing and losing a few stupid games.” 

Jeonghan’s fingers curled dangerously into his own thighs. “ The fuckin witch in a tent. That’s what happened.”  
Joshua’s eyes narrowed. Seungcheol leaned against the doorway, his shoulders slumping in defeat: He couldn’t stop this conversation. Not this time around. 

“ Ya know, I was heading right back to the RV when you fucking called.” Joshua challenged. “ If you hadn’t went out, we never would have walked around together and went to the tent. So, maybe, maybe it was your fault that that happened, not mine.”

Seungcheol watched as Jeonghan’s shoulders raised, his hair practically standing on end. “Excuse me?!” Jeonghan hissed out. Joshua shrugged, and stood up. Seungcheol noticed how the younger stumbled, but thought it was better to not interfere with him at the moment. As long as he didn’t fall, Seungcheol wasn’t too worried. 

“Excuse you.” Joshua responded, staring down at the second eldest. 

“ You were going to get killed by that bitch or something.” Jeonghan accused. Joshua scoffed, looking away.

“ I would never have gone over there if it wasn’t for you. God. Jeonghan.” Joshua made quotation marks with his fingers. His voice as soft as ever. “ Have any other examples for me , while you’re at it Han?”

There was a pregnant pause. Joshua’s eyes staring challengingly into the other’s. 

“Yeah, actually I do.” Jeonghan announced, standing up himself. He dusted off his jeans before looking at the other boy. “ At the museum! You fucking fainted Joshua. I can’t leave you alone ever.”

“I fainted. Yeah, sure.” Joshua glared. “ But that was not because I was by myself, it was because I’m me. That’s it. ”

“NO! Joshua.” Jeonghan hissed, grabbing onto the younger’s forearms. Seungcheol saw a flash of pain pass through Joshua’s eyes. At that, Seungcheol reached over, a hand falling on Jeonghan’s shoulder. The second eldest slapped it away. “ It was in fact because you weren’t you.”

“What is that even supposed to mean?” Joshua questioned, tugging on trying to bring his arms back. Jeonghan only held on tighter. When the pain flashed in his eyes once more, Seungcheol noticed a wave of confusion. This confusion though was not at the question, but directed towards Jeonghan’s hands on his forearms. 

“It’s because you know, you’re not. You’re just.” Jeonghan struggled, his grip lightening. At that chance, Joshua rushed his arms back to his chest. Seungcheol’s eyes widened at what looked to be burn marks across the forearms. His lips opened to question it, when Joshua spoke first.

“ Not what? Not strong? Not capable?” Joshua barked out. “ Not a muscle man like Seungcheol? Not a word manipulator like you? Sure I can’t woo strangers, or lift a ton of bricks but I don’t need you protecting me. I’m a grown man Jeonghan. Sorry I’m not just a pet to keep around.” 

Jeonghan’s eyes softened, his own arms falling to his side. “ Joshua that’s not what I meant.” 

“Is it not?” The youngest attacked, wrapping his arms around himself. His voice still didn’t waver, once again calm, steady, professional: Distant. “ Because you know, I’m the one who can’t leave you guys alone! You guys would have died at the hotel without me. Seungcheol would have jumped, you would have followed him with whatever Gambino was cursing at you with. You wouldn’t have the equipment you have now without me. I’m not just a mascot Jeonghan.” 

Jeonghan's eyes hardened once again at the mention of Gambino. “ That's not fair.” 

“ What's not fair, is me just doing me, and ending up on the receiving end of your anger.” Joshua’s voice had wavered. Seungcheol moved to stand between the two; One hand reached up into Jeonghan’s hair, fiddling with it gently while the other held on to Joshua’s hand softly. “Honestly, what’s been going on?! Why are you always angry at me?!”

“I’m not always angry at you.” Jeonghan bit back. Seungcheol watched the second eldest blink back a rebellious tear. 

Seungcheol decided to interrupt; “ Maybe, maybe we should call it a night.”

But neither one listened. “Yes you are!” Joshua exclaimed, his cheeks flaring red. Seungcheol felt his bones crushing under Joshua’s grip. 

“ I am not!”

“THEN WHAT WAS EARLIER?!” The boy yelled, tears falling freely down the young face. His voice quieted down, controlling itself.“ What was earlier? What was that night in the hotel when I wanted to research? When you told me you didn’t care about it? Why can Seungcheol do whatever, and I can’t? Why are you getting mad at me for being me?”

“Because you’re not being you!” 

“What does that fucking mean Hannie?!” The young boy cried out, “What does that even mean?”

Jeonghan’s hands dragged across his face, exhausted. As they brushed his lips, pain, fear, sadness it was clear were all written across the second oldest’s face. Seungcheol watched him, worried, albeit a little curious; Would he tell him? “ It means, it means…”

“I’m listening.” Joshua sneered. Seungcheol squeezed the younger boy’s hand in a warning. They both were teetering on the edge of lines. It was a matter of minutes before someone said something they didn’t mean. 

“It means all the obsessing is not right, something is, I dunno.” Jeonghan grumbled. “ Something’s wrong with you or…” The boy’s eyes widened. “Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait that’s not what I meant.”

The two eldest boy’s watched as Joshua’s eyes hardened, tears seeming to have been frozen on command. “ Ha. Sure. You know for such a word smith, for a manipulator,” Joshua’s words were slow. “ For such a fantastic manipulator, you really don’t know when to control yourself, do ya? Don’t know when to close your damn mouth.” 

Seungcheol gasped. “ Joshua!” 

Jeonghan either had ignored the statement, or was focused on damage control, for his next words were; “ I’m trying to say you’re a demon Joshua.”

The desperate tinge of the voice was lost to Joshua, for the boy spit back. “ I’ll see you in hell then.” 

Seungcheol’s eyebrows furrowed as he heard those last words, the voice not holding the same softness Joshua usually had even when angered. The voice was deeper, scratchier, almost seemed to be layered over Joshua’s own voice. However, Seungcheol didn’t dwell on it when he watched the youngest stomp away, stumbling only slightly. Instead of following the youngest, which Jeonghan probably would have preferred, the eldest wrapped a comforting hand around Jeonghan’s shoulders, holding him close. The second eldest did not struggle, instead leaning a tired head onto his shoulder. 

“ I fucked up.” Jeonghan admitted. Seungcheol only responded by squeezing the boy tighter. “ I keep fucking up.”

Seungcheol shook his head, and placed a gentle kiss on the boy’s forehead. “ You don’t.”

“ I do though.” Jeonghan whispered, curling his fingers into Seungcheol’s. “ I do. ‘Shua is right.”

“ Right about?” Seungcheol asked. Jeonghan buried his face further into Seungcheol’s shoulders. 

“Right about me always taking my anger out on him, about him being a grown adult. That we don’t need to protect him.” Jeonghan responded. “Right about me being a manipulator.”

Seungcheol made a whine of disapproval. “ You’re not a manipulator.”

“ I am so. I manipulated the hotel guys, I manipulate conversations to go the way I want. I manipulated Joshua to kiss me on the beach. I manipulated you guys in the past, and I’ll probably continue to do it in the future.” Jeonghan rambled, trying to separate himself from Seungcheol, but to no avail. Seungcheol wrapped his other arm tightly around Jeonghan. 

Seungcheol chuckled. “Okay, so you’re a manipulator.”

“HEY!” Jeonghan protested. “ I do it cause I care.”

“There we go.” Seungcheol pointed out. “ You’ve never actually manipulated us. Sure you manipulated the hotel guy to get us a free room, but that’s just you… I don’t dislike that part of you. We all happily follow the way you lead conversations Jeonghan, and you’ve never stopped use from talking about what we love. If you really did, we wouldn’t have an RV right now. And Joshua kissed you because, surprise, surprise, Joshua likes you.” Seungcheol explained. He gently pressed his nose against Jeonghan’s. “And for the record, I like you too.”

Seungcheol grinned softly at the light blush covering the boy’s cheeks. “ I like you a lot, some would even say it’s love.”

“It better be love, dumbass.” Jeonghan mumbled.

“It is love, Hannie.” Seungcheol whispered, pressing his lips against Jeonghan’s. The kiss was light, featherlight, and innocent. Still, Jeonghan fluttered his eyes shut, trying to ignore the world around them. The second eldest wrapped his arms around the older’s waist, hooking his pinkies together behind the boy’s back, a promise to himself that he would never let this man go. 

“ I love you too.” Jeonghan said into the kiss.

“ I know.”

“I love Joshua too.” 

“He knows.”

Jeonghan pulled his head back gently staring at Seungcheol. “ Does he though? He’s so mad.”

Seungcheol sighed, the smile gone from his face. “Jeonghan, while I love you, and understand why you did and said what you did… you didn’t do it well.” The eldest felt his heart hurt at the drop of a sadness landing on the other boy’s face.

“ He’s just, he doesn’t fucking understand what’s going on.” Jeonghan complained, pulling on the back of Seungcheol’s jacket annoyed. 

“And whose fault is that?” Seungcheol asked. Jeonghan sighed, and avoided eye contact as his teeth fiddled with his lip. “Jeonghan? Whose fault is that.”

“Stop making me answer questions out loud.” Jeonghan whined. “But yeah, it’s mine. It’s my fault. I just, I can’t just tell him, and like, would things even change if I did?”

“What do you mean?”

Jeonghan shrugged, bringing his fingers to the front of Jeonghan’s clothes, playing with the ends. “ It won’t change the fact that I get scared every time he’s alone that something will go wrong, or that he will get hurt. It doesn’t change that some demon is trying to tear him from the inside out. It doesn’t change any of that.”

“Yeah, but it changes how he will react Hannie. Keeping secrets does more harm than good.” Seungcheol explained, and lifted a hand up to tip the other boy’s chin up. The younger’s gaze now matching with Seungcheol’s. “ Do you know why two can keep a secret?”

“ Because one is dead.” 

Seungcheol nodded, a sad smile on his lips. “ Don’t keep secrets Hannie. There are three of us in this relationship, and so far only two people know the secret. We don’t want this to end up with anyone hurt, so you need to tell him.”

Jeonghan pouted. “ Why didn’t you tell him then?”

“It wasn’t my secret to share Hannie.”

Nodding, Jeonghan reached up and grabbed the finger against his chin. He lifted it up gently to his lips, and kissed it. “ I’ll tell him.”

“ Good, but first you have to do something you hate even more.” Seungcheol teased. Jeonghan rolled his eyes, squeezing the hand as he began looking away. 

“ I’ll go apologize,”

“ And don’t fight with him. I don’t want him to hold a grudge.”

“Joshua doesn’t hold grudges.” The two chuckled.

They laughed because its true. The youngest wouldn’t hold a grudge, that was more Jeonghan’s territory. After a fight, even one the younger had won, Joshua would over think it, over analyze it and find himself defeated in the made up argument. Maybe in a sense it was a grudge ,but one against himself, not to anyone else.

With one final kiss, the two separated and strolled out the door, fingers hooked around one another once again. Outside of the house, in the distance, the two could spot Joshua curled up on a side bench. His legs were curled into him, the toe of the shoes dangling over the edge. His gaze focused on the cement below. As they walked over, Jeonghan’s gaze never strayed away from the boy, however his mind wandered.

He thought back to when he first met the boy.

It was years ago, almost five, six maybe seven years. Jeonghan never counted, only made sure to have the date ready in his phone every year. The numbers was Joshua’ thing, and the actual celebration was Seungcheol’s. Jeonghan was content with just acknowledging that time has passed for them, because he personally never thought it would go passed a year. 

God he was so glad that it did. 

But when they had met, Jeonghan and Seungcheol had already been friends, having met under the most unusual of circumstances. The two were practically inseparable by the time they met Joshua, and were living casually in Seungcheol’s beat up car. They were free spirits, as Seungcheol liked to call them. As far as Jeonghan knew, the boy was calling himself a free spirited long before meeting any of them, and he still claim they were still free spirited, just with a little more spirit on the side than he was hoping for. 

Joshua found that statement funny. Jeonghan found it cringe-y. Seungcheol found it ground-breaking. No one argued about their opinions on that. 

To be honest, Seungcheol was actually the first one to meet the boy. It was a heroic tale, as Seungcheol liked to tell it. Joshua never denied it, Jeonghan would occasionally play along. Their opinions didn’t change the fact that Seungcheol did in fact always feel the need to help those in need, without any context ever. Jeonghan was mighty thankful for that, but he still wished it would have changed after Joshua. 

You see, the day they met Joshua was only a few months after Jeonghan and Seungcheol had met. They were in his car, in Korea at the time, passing through sketchy street after sketchy street. Seungcheol was lost, Jeonghan knew where to go to get out, but was too entertained by the giant puppy of a driver looking heartbroken over Google Maps forcing his icon to hover over the Pacific Ocean. Jeonghan had his feet hanging out the car window, lazily playing with his phone.They were stopped at a street light when Seungcheol noticed it- Jeonghan was complaining about “Just drive, it’s empty, it’s night. No one will even see. Just goooo~”. But it wasn’t the red light that made Seungcheol’s body freeze. A second after Jeonghan complained, a shiver ran up his back. Reluctantly, the younger boy sat up in his chair and closed the window, assuming it was the cold. When the light turned green, Jeonghan playfully shoved at the other. “Go, the light’s green.” 

But the driver didn’t go. Jeonghan tilted his head to get a better look at Seungcheol, only to see the elder’s face was filled with concentration. He followed his gaze to see two males talking at the corner of the sidewalk. One male was terribly tall, leaning against the wall of a brick building, his arms crossed. Sporting black jeans and a grey hoodie, he didn’t seem the most friendly. His hair was greased back, and black, a frightful smirk played on his lips. The other male was slightly smaller, thinner. He wore a beige sweater over blue jeans. He was bouncing on his heels as he spoke to the other. 

Seungcheol had rolled down his own window. Jeonghan did not feel a breeze, but a tingle went up his spine once more. As a result, Jeonghan tugged on Seungcheol’s sleeve. “ Hey, I don’t feel so good about this. Let’s go.” 

“Same.”

Sighing, Jeonghan tugged on it harder. “ No I mean leave here. I’m getting a weird feeling, let’s leave.”

Seungcheol sighed as he glanced back at the younger. However his ears twitched as he heard the voice of the smaller stranger boy speak. It was hard to hear, but Seungcheol got the gist;

“ So, do you know where it is? It’s in Gangnam, and I know I’m really far, but if you can just point me to the right place, I would really appreciate it.” The boy asked, a slight accent clear with almost every word. He was holding up a piece of paper, words scrawled across it, and a book. It was then that the two boys in the car noticed the suitcase at the side. 

The taller boy pursed his lips, gazing into the sky as if he was thinking.

“He’s a foreigner.” Seungcheol mumbled.

“What gave it away, the suitcase or his accent?” Jeonghan sassed. Seungcheol made a half-assed quieting motion with his hand, his attention still on the strangers. The street light had turned red again.

The taller man then pushed himself off of the wall and to the other boy. “ It’s just south of here, I’ll walk you there.” 

Seungcheol’s eyes narrowed. “It’s north of here though.” he muttered. Jeonghan glanced worriedly at the other male. 

“Really?” These words were in english. “Thank you so much!” 

“Don’t mention it.” The man grinned, sliding over beside the boy, and placing his hand on the sole of his back. “Just stay close by, can’t trust these streets.”

Seungcheol was already putting the car in park as the taller man began to push the smaller in the wrong direction. The hand on the male’s back slowly traveling lower. 

“Cheol, wait.” Jeonghan ordered, reaching over hesitantly. 

Seungcheol gave the other male a reassuring smile, before he slid out of the driver seat. Having given up, Jeonghan slammed his head against the head rest of the car and let the male run over to the strangers. “Get killed, what do I care.”

But it was because he cared that he kept his gaze on the male jogging across the street. 

“ Hey! Jisoo!” Seungcheol called out. 

‘Jisoo?’ Jeonghan thought, ‘ Who the fuck is Jisoo?’ 

The two males turned around. A slightly uneasy smile was on the smaller’s lips, and it did not go unnoticed by Seungcheol. When he arrived at their side though, the taller strange man, wrapped his arm possessively around the smaller’s waist. The smallest’s eyes widening with confusion, and the gaze suddenly fluttered around the street, glancing at Seungcheol, the man, the car, Jeonghan, the 7/11 across the street, and back to Seungcheol. 

“Jisoo, why are you so far from home?” Seungcheol asked, stepping closer. “It’s dangerous to be leaving with strangers, besides aren’t you going to Gangnam?” 

The small boy tilted his head, nose scrunching up slightly. “Yeah?” His voice was soft like an angel, at least that is what Seungcheol first said to Jeonghan that night. 

“ Then why you going the opposite way?” Seungcheol let out a laugh. It was fake. Jeonghan knew it was fake, but that’s because Jeonghan has heard his real laugh. It was fake, but it was relaxing.“ Dude, you are always getting lost. I have a car, I’ll drop you off.”

As the words were spoken, Jeonghan watched them be registered one syllable at a time. The smaller boy’s face was so easy to read, as the nose scrunched, eyebrows furrowed and then the eyes widened. The boy took a step towards Seungcheol, only to feel himself pulled back against the taller male. The boy’s eyes widened even more, but there was a flash of panic. Another tingle, a strong tingle, traveled down his spine, and Jeonghan sighed, annoyed. He pushed his body out the window of the car and waved over at the three.

“ Yo, mom’s waiting Jisoo.” Jeonghan called out. The boy stared at Jeonghan in confusion, rightfully so. 

The smaller boy attempted to move forward again only to be gripped long a doll and tossed into the brick wall beside them. The tall man stepping in front of him, and crouching slightly, fists out. Jeonghan let out a painfully, obnoxious sigh. 

“Seungcheol don’t you dare get into a fucking fist fight, or I will seriously drive the car away by myself.” Jeonghan cursed out, but Seungcheol had already spread his feet and bent his knees just so. "For fuck sakes."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, last week's update was early, this one is late. I apologize! This chapter was supposed to be longer, so it apparently is going to be at least two parts. This should not however impact the amount of chapters in total, but if it does I will tell you all next time. 
> 
> Are you guys excited? A lot of shit happened here, relationship and character wise. What do you think of Joshua and Jeonghan fighting? And you get some actual backstory, not just the characters talking about it! Isn't that exciting? More next chapter :3
> 
> Please comment below and tell me your opinions of the chapter and the story! It would mean the world to me!
> 
> Finally, I have been swarmed with work recently. Where I currently live ( again I will be moving in the next month or so), work hours can go from 8 to 12 hours, and you're always on call for your boss. So I've been working twelve hour shifts for one of my jobs, and four hour shifts for the other during school days. (Is it legal... maybe not... do I need money... yes) As a result my chapters may be shorter, or late... I apologize. Things should calm down soon. 
> 
> Sincerely, 
> 
> V.AY


	10. Chapter 9: Joshua PT 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I love you.” Jeonghan announced. 
> 
> Joshua chuckled and shook his head. “ I know, Jeonghan.”
> 
> “No.” Jeonghan countered, holding the boy tightly. “ I love you.”
> 
> “Jeonghan.”
> 
> “I love you, and you are going to be okay, and I’m sorry.” Jeonghan said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who edits now a days, I mean really..........sorry.
> 
> (Also REMINDER: This continues from the flashback of the previous chapter)

The fight didn’t last long. Jeonghan would estimate it took a total of five minutes, and that was a generous estimate. There were a few stray punches, embarrassing kicks and threatening words shared between the two. In the end, only a few seemed to have really made a difference in the fight. Jeonghan had seated himself on the car window, feet still inside the car, with his arms on the roof. One hand holding his head up from falling as he stared bored at the scene in front of him. The tall stranger swung a punch, only for his wrist to be caught into a tight hold by Seungcheol. In one fluid motion, Seungcheol pulled the arm towards him, twisting himself so the arm laid against his own shoulder blades, before letting his free arm curl, and elbow the man in the throat. When the stranger automatically attempted to backpedal away, Seungcheol casually let go of the wrist, causing the man to stumble. Angered, the man threw another punch, the moment he balanced himself out. Seungcheol ducked, pressing his fist harshly against his opponent’s stomach. With a groan, the man stepped back. 

“ I can go all day, so,” Seungcheol announced. “Leave now, or leave later in a body bag, your choice.” 

Jeonghan’s mouth opened slightly, ready to comment on the insanity of his remark, but ultimately decided staying quiet for the moment was best; Seungcheol may have been dramatic, but to be honest, Jeonghan wasn’t quite sure about that. 

The words however, seemed to have done the trick. The stranger scoffed, waving a defeated hand towards Seungcheol before sulking down the sidewalk. When the man was a good distance away, Seungcheol straightened himself out and brushed off his jeans. With a brilliant smile, Seungcheol swung around and held a gentle hand out to the boy he named ‘Jisoo’ only minutes prior. 

“ Hey! I’m Seungcheol.” He greeted, his hand still hanging midair between the two males. “ What’s your name?”

Awkwardly, the other boy attached his hand to Seungcheol’s shaking it softly. “ Joshua.” The boy responded. “ My name is Joshua.” 

“Man! I was so close with that name thing.” Seungcheol grinned. The oldest male turned his head to look back at Jeonghan, a proud grin on his face. “ Jeonghan! I almost guessed his name right!”

Jeonghan rolled his eyes, but still smiled as a sign of recognition. 

“Anyway, I mean you probably know this, but you shouldn’t rely on random strangers on the street to give you directions, specifically at night.” Seungcheol explained, his hands moving as he spoke. “ It’s not the most safe technique for getting where you need to go. Maybe go into a restaurant or something. ”

Joshua laughed, his nose crinkling. “ Probably not but it’s what got me this far in life. It’s natural to run into a couple bad eggs though.” 

“ You might not want to risk running into bad eggs.” Seungcheol muttered out. 

Joshua shrugged. “ You can’t always stay away from the bad stuff, you got to face it head on sometimes.” 

Seungcheol nodded, his face slightly scrunched up as he thought about the words spoken: Jeonghan knew even after a couple of months, Seungcheol was friendly and outgoing. He knew the boy would help anyone in need, speak to those who needed him , but “need” was the keyword. The type to be a little more skeptical of others, a little more rational about a situation, a little more friendly to those needing kindness, he wouldn’t turn people away. However, he, himself, did not rely on strangers, or talk to those that he didn’t think he would be of any use for. Seungcheol was carefree in adventures, not necessarily people. Joshua though, was carefree, or rather naive. Jeonghan didn’t know which he would rather be next to if he had to choose.

With a scratch of the back of his neck, Seungcheol smiled gently at the boy. “ Well, I know this contradicts what I just said, but I can give you a ride to wherever you’re heading if you want. I have a car, and we are sort of just cruising at this point so it shouldn’t be a problem.” 

The boy stared at Seungcheol like a deer lost in headlights. Nervously, Seungcheol moved his head from side to side, as if reminding him he was still in front of him. Then, the boy looked down at his suitcase before glancing back at Seungcheol. 

“ That would be nice.” Joshua responded, smiling back softly. “ But first, if you don’t mind. Can I run over to the 7/11 over there and grab a few snacks. I can grab you some stuff too, as a thank you.” 

Seungcheol’s eyes traveled to the 7/11 as he spoke; “ Of course, but you don’t need to get anything for me. I’m fine. Just knowing you’re safe would be thank you enough for me.”

Jeonghan watched as a light blush spread across the boy’s cheeks. The boy’s hands fumbling with the book in hand. “ Uh, yeah, yeah. So I’m going to go grab stuff, and I’ll meet you at your car.” Joshua explained, as he stumbled off the sidewalk and onto the road. 

Seungcheol glanced down at the forgotten suitcase with a chuckle, before picking it up and carrying it to the car. As Seungcheol closed in, Jeonghan slid back into his seat. The older male tossed the suitcase into the trunk with a little hum. When he slid into the front seat, Jeonghan finally spoke;

“ Stop picking up strays.”

A surprised cough was his reply. Jeonghan rolled his eyes and crossed his arms as he leaned into his seat. 

“ I’m not picking up any strays Jeonghan.” Seungcheol countered. Jeonghan only shrugged, glancing at the rear view mirror, where the 7/11 store was in clear view. “ We’re just giving him a ride.” 

“ What if he’s dangerous?” Jeonghan grumbled out. Seungcheol shrugged. 

“ Then we bring him to the police. I mean, we already have him in the car.”

“ Seungcheol, I’m not joking here.”

“ I’m not either.”

Jeonghan sent him a millisecond of a glare. His gaze only turning back to the side view mirror, seeing the stranger walking out of the convenience store with a plastic bag in one hand, a book in another. Jeonghan’s eyes furrowed as he watched Joshua walk down the side walk, his nose practically one with the book. 

“Okay, I was, a bit.” Seungcheol joked. “ But Jeonghan, you saw him. He’s just a lost foreigner, not a dangerous mob boss. We help him to his hotel, and then we go our separate ways. Quick and snappy.”

The words tore Jeonghan’s attention away from the reflection. Jeonghan narrowed his eyes at the older boy. “ Promise?”

Seungcheol opened his mouth to reply, only for him to bark out a laugh. The eldest’s eyes staring at the rearview mirror before twisting his body around to see through the back window: Joshua had moved the plastic bag on to his wrist, the same side holding onto the book, while his other hand pathetically kept trying to open the backdoor of the car behind them. Jeonghan followed his actions, to see the boy, after multiple failed attempts, finally look up from his book to finally realize he was not at the right car. The moment there realization hit him was amusing to Jeonghan. Joshua had slowly glanced up from his book, stared into he dark car in front of him, before slowly turning his head to the car in front of it. His eyes were wide, confused, as he made eye contact with the two other males.

Laughing, Seungcheol rolled down the window of his car, and waved for the boy to come over. “ Wrong car.” Joshua nodded, another pink blush darkening his skin. Seungcheol smiled as he rolled his eyes, and closed the window. Jeonghan however side eyed the other boy. 

“Seungcheol.” Jeonghan grumbled out.

“Hm?” 

“Promise?”

Seungcheol chuckled and nodded, holding out a pinky. “ Promise.” At those words, Jeonghan wrapped his own pinky around his, curling it tightly. 

A moment later the boy was in the car, and had sat himself in the middle seat. “ Sorry, thank you so much for this.” 

Instead of a normal response, Jeonghan twisted around in his seat. He eyed the man up and down, before focusing on the dark brown eyes. “Do you need glasses or something?”

Unconsciously, Joshua reached a hand up to his face. His voice became softer as he spoke. “ I wear contacts.”

Scoffing, Jeonghan turned back around in his seat, staring at the empty street ahead of him. “ Then how did you go to the wrong ass car?”

“I uh, I don’t know.” The boy whispered. Jeonghan decided to leave it at that, buckling himself in instead of gifting him with a response.Seconds after the boy settled in, and Seungcheol started the car, the boy suddenly straightened up. Alert, Seungcheol spun his body around to look at Joshua. The strange boy’s eyes were wide.

“Where is my suitcase?”

Seungcheol barked out another laugh before explaining he had already packed it away in the trunk. With a soft thank you from the strange boy, the trio finally set out on their trip. Joshua had handed Seungcheol a designation he had written on a piece of paper. 

Jeonghan had hoped the trip would be silent, perhaps even thinking he had intimidated the new boy enough that he wouldn’t dare start up a conversation. However, Seungcheol had a different idea. He had asked about Joshua, as in where he was from, where he was going and why he was even here. 

They learned quickly that he was from the United States and was traveling around the world for work. Coming to Korea was an excuse to see where his grandparents were from but also to go research some old apartment complex hidden in the dark corners of Gangnam. It was at that point of the conversation that Jeonghan saw Seungcheol becoming interested. 

Because the job wasn’t a normal job. It wasn’t a business man. It wasn’t a chef. It wasn’t an actor. No, it was a paranormal investigator. Jeonghan had raised an eyebrow when the man had quietly answered their questions, but Seungcheol on the other hand, seemed to have become overly engaged with this man’s life. Questions began flying out of his mouth rapidly. Joshua seemed prepared to answer every question, seemed composed, but Jeonghan noted the confusion in the younger boy’s eyes. 

“ How’d you get into ghosts?” Seungcheol asked. 

Joshua chuckled. “ I’ve always been into ghosts.” 

“Yeah, but like, when did you start investigating the paranormal?” Seungcheol rephrased. Joshua pursed his lips and shrugged. 

“Like I said I’ve always been into it. Seriously I started when I was like six. I used to do it more traditionally though, but I personally found it wasn’t helping the circumstances I was living in so I decided to switch.”

Jeonghan spoke up; “ Traditionally? How can there be a traditional method?” 

Although the words weren’t out of curiosity, but more so a snarky comment, Joshua still answered politely. “ Everything has a traditional method, but what people use now is sort of complicated. It’s a religion versus science debate. Even though the two concepts fight on a lot of stuff, there are certain corners of the science academic field which has agreed that the afterlife is a definite possibility. As a result, the science fields began experimenting with other methods in capturing or solving ghost related problems. Years after starting their research and finding that there are entities with complicated biological structures floating around random places, for lack of a better word, they formed their own solid methods. However, the methods on both sides have some moral dilemmas, to say the least.” 

Jeonghan nodded, but quickly stopped when he caught a knowing smirk on Seungcheol’s face. Jeonghan turned his neck to stare, moodily, out the window.

“And what are these moral dilemmas?” Seungcheol asked, his voice teasing: He knew that was Jeonghan’s next question.

“ Well, I mean the traditional method is to force the demon or ghost to leave the premises. This is with the hopes that the demon or ghost will finally find their way to the afterlife, and never haunt a place again. More times than not, the spirit is just forced to travel somewhere new and cause more havoc. There is a belief that if the spirit is a plain old ghost then the spirit still has humanity in it’s DNA and as a result would be immoral to kill it. Demons on the other hand are troubled, angered spirits, perhaps sent from Hell to take revenge on God’s creation, but even so they are creatures who deserve only God’s final decision. So, once again it is immoral to kill it.” Joshua began to explain. Jeonghan had curled himself up in the seat, but he was still listening. 

“ The newer method, or the scientific viewpoint is that due to the fact that we do not understand the Spirits or what they fundamentally actually are, it is important to study them. Originally, Ghost hunters, or Paranormal Investigators, would capture the ghosts that were recently forced out of a house, because this seemed less immoral: You were capturing a culprit or something. I think originally P.I’s thought they were similar to Ghost police. Anyway, they are studied and there have been methods created to kill them or get rid of them. To be honest, no one is sure exactly how the method works; Most methods end up with the ghost being sucked into a vacuum for research, “police custody” or shot at with plasmic guns. There are certain lasers which force the particles of a spirit to separate, too. This is the closest to killing them I guess.. but it’s not really? I honestly don’t know if you can kill the dead.”

There was silence after he spoke, for a good minute. Then Seungcheol spoke. “ You talk a lot when you’re interested in something.” 

“That’s what you are focusing on?” Jeonghan spat out. “ He’s a ghost murderer.”

The boy in the back seat practically squeaked at the name. “ I’m not a murderer!” He exclaimed, his face flushing red. 

Jeonghan rolled his eyes. “ You literally explained that the newer method, the one you use, contemplates killing ghosts.”

“I’ve never killed a ghost before.” Joshua announced. “ I don’t use the laser… I’ve only captured them and more often than not study…. them.”

“So you capture beings and force them to become an experiment for you? How is this less immoral.” Jeonghan’s snapped. Seungcheol sighed. “ Seungcheol. Pull over. He can walk.”

“No, no no no no no.” Joshua pleaded, his hands reaching to hold onto the front seats. Jeonghan made the mistake to glance at the rearview mirror, making eye contact with the cat-eyed male. His eyes were shining, desperate, and sad. “Please.. .you have got to understand traditional and newer methods are not the most moral of jobs. The traditional system can permanently damage a human psyche, let a demon run free, and charge exorbitant amounts of money to the victims of the paranormal circumstance within the first fifteen minutes of a traditionalist taking up the case. In worse case scenarios, the victim will be killed through the exorcism process, and once again the ghost goes free.” Joshua quickly responded. His voice began to shake.

“ The modern method often uses cognitive and behavioral therapy methods in order to coax the ghosts out of a human’s body, with the assumption you are dealing with a normal spirit. This is because research finds normal spirits are still sensitive to normal cognitive functions and are easily swayed. Occasionally more physical methods are used, if it is a demon due to the lack of research on a demon’s psyche, and almost zero research on what a demon actually is. Point is the victim goes through less traumatic episodes when using the modern method. Ghosts are captured, much like prisoners are in our everyday life. They did something wrong and they are paying for it. Yes, it is true they are experimented on occasionally. More often than not, it is research taken at the crime scene we use to experiment, but I can’t lie. Sometimes ghosts have gone through some horrendous experiments. As far as we know, it has not altered their psyche or caused any longing effects.”

Joshua breathed in deeply. “ I want…I want to not have to see people suffer anymore.” He confessed. Jeonghan’s shoulder’s had fallen at those words. The second eldest turning in his seat to look at the other. “ We can’t stop everything, but with research, and studying and furthering our technology, maybe no one will ever have to suffer by the translucent hands of outer-world beings, again. Maybe we will figure out what a demon is, and learn to stop it. I don’t know. At least, I can make solving people’s problems cheaper.” 

There wasn’t even a second of silence before Joshua began to mumble to himself off topic. “ Maybe Traditionalists were right and they are beings sent from hell, but it doesn’t make sense that they don’t have a biological code, right?” His head was piercing into Seungcheol’s as if he would have the answer. “ And if they have a biological code that means that can be changed, and demons can behave similar to ghosts, which means we would be able to stop this whole mess. I mean, evolution is a thing right?”

“Oh my god.” Jeonghan groaned, dragging a hand down his face. “ You talk so much.”

“Oh.” Joshua muttered, sitting back into his seat. His hands folded on his lap. “ Sorry.” 

Seungcheol glared over at Jeonghan, who put his hands up in defense. “It’s not a problem.” Jeonghan mumbled out, stealing a glance at the boy through the rearview mirror. “ And yeah, evolution is a thing.” 

At those words, Joshua smiled, Seungcheol’s glare vanished, and Jeonghan sighed. The conversation slowly became lighter as the drive reached its destination. Joshua had laughed softly at a few of Jeonghan’s offhand comments about Seungcheol’s driving, which only encouraged him more. Seungcheol, as an act of revenge would switch the music playlist, causing Joshua to cover his mouth as he smiled. What Jeonghan found the most strange was, he had actually found a sense of comfort with the boy in the backseat. He was almost saddened by the fact that building they had taken the detour for was just in sight. 

As they parked on the side of the road, there was a heavy silence. Jeonghan secretly watched the other males’ expressions shift through the rear view mirror. Joshua was scrunching up his nose, staring at the clock above their steering wheel, absentmindedly. His fingers were curled into his jeans. Seungcheol had his eyes flickering between Joshua and Jeonghan for the last few minutes of the ride. Jeonghan could see the tiniest indent in Seungcheol’s cheek, as if the older boy was nervously chewing on it. The moment the car was put in park, Jeonghan felt the atmosphere darken even more. 

Jeonghan watched Seungcheol climb out of the car, popping the trunk as he did so. Joshua placed a hesitant hand on Jeonghan’s shoulder, following it with a docile “ Thank you” before sliding out of the backseat. Jeonghan could hear the muffling of their conversation through the car. He could hear how Seungcheol elongated every word, every thought. He saw through the rearview mirror, how Seungcheol had yet to take his hand off of the suitcase. He watched as Joshua occasionally glanced back at the front of the car, his eyes yearning. Jeonghan felt the burning of his pinky reaching his heart. 

With a sigh, Jeonghan opened the door, and slid his phone out of his pocket. He half-heartedly punched in his passcode before pressing the little contact APP. He held the phone out in front of Joshua. “ Add your number.” In the corner of his eye, Jeonghan could see a wide smile blossoming on Seungcheol’s face. Joshua cautiously added his phone number into the phone before handing it back. Jeonghan clicked the contact and called it, waiting for Joshua’s phone to ring. The youngest boy slowly brought it out, confusion clear on his face.

“Now you have our number.” Jeonghan explained. “ Next time you need help, or whatever just call us. We don’t do much.”

“Practically nothing.” Seungcheol quickly added on. 

Joshua held the phone, his own phone, tightly against his chest as it continued to ring. A smile similar to Seungcheol’s appearing rapidly. Jeonghan curled his lips in and backed away slowly. “ Okay, well. Nice to meet you. Don’t die. Don’t kill ghosts. Chat you later.” 

As he slid back into his seat, Jeonghan could hear Seungcheol’s voice raise in pitch. Chuckling, Jeonghan leaned his head back, and closed his eyes. 

Although Jeonghan had exchanged numbers with Joshua, he had never thought the boy would contact them again. It was only a few days later that Jeonghan received a call from the boy asking to treat them to lunch as a thank you. Jeonghan found himself accepting the lunch without even consulting Seungcheol. And that wasn’t their last meeting either. 

Daily meetings went on for weeks, for months. The three of them were spending as much time together as possible, occasionally investigating haunted buildings for fun. Occasionally, they spent a night curled up in the back of Seungcheol’s car with the seats pushed back. Occasionally, Jeonghan found himself texting the younger boy ‘good morning’ texts first. Occasionally, turned into often and often turned into everyday. 

And like that their life as a trio officially began. 

 

Thinking about these memories, as the second eldest walked closer to the boy on the bench, he knew he wouldn’t change any of it. In front of him was an ever naive, ever curious boy he fell in love with all those years ago. However, Jeonghan also noticed in front of him was a scared and tired Joshua. So when he finally sat next to Joshua, wrapping a comforting arm around his shoulders, he apologized. Joshua absent-mindedly nodded his head, although Jeonghan was not sure he had actually processed the words. Even so, Jeonghan took it as a small win. After a few quiet moments, Seungcheol grabbed his two boyfriends’ hands and slowly walked them back to the RV. 

As they walked back once more, Jeonghan’s mind drifted off again. He couldn’t help but to think how his anger was so misplaced those passed few days. He was always the first to react negatively, but he always worked on never focusing the negative emotions onto his boyfriends, especially not Joshua.

It wasn’t because he cared for Joshua more, or that Seungcheol was better at handling his emotions (To be honest, that may have been part of the reason), but there was always something about him that made Jeonghan feel he shouldn’t bother him more than he already does. It wasn’t because he was studious; Jeonghan would just push the books away. It wasn’t because he was easily bothered; Jeonghan could play the same song for hours without annoying him. It was because of an event that happened a year or two ago:

 

It was possibly four years ago when things began to change. They had started their own paranormal investigation team after a year of research, practice and raising enough money with odd jobs so they could afford the modern equipment. Working was fun, mostly. Jeonghan despised the paperwork and often pushed it onto Seungcheol. The eldest rarely would complain about it, rather having it done sooner rather than later. 

The change of Jeonghan’s heart began when they sat down one night, over a glass of wine and began to just chat. They were curled up on a picnic blanket Joshua had brought, in the middle of the parking lot, an hour or two before the sun would rise. They were not in a position to see the sunrise, but Jeonghan didn’t mind. Seungcheol’s car was beside them, softly playing Jeonghan’s playlist. 

The conversation started lighthearted, but quickly dived into deeper topics. Seungcheol once and a while would bring up an existential question, staring endlessly at the empty parking lot. Jeonghan could practically see the wheels turning in his head, but didn’t question any of his ideas. Jeonghan occasionally talked about hard-to-hear stories he learned about on social media, and some charities he saw needing money to keep being able to support people. Joshua on the other hand was mostly quiet. 

Usually when the topic started to drift to family, everyone became a little tense. Seungcheol’s eyes would drift to his car before sending the other two a bittersweet smile; The two already knew of Seungcheol’s parents dying in a car crash. The eldest had no qualms about sharing this information, using it as an explanation for why he’d occasionally just stop the car on the side of the road with out warning. Joshua and Jeonghan stopped mentioning these actions the moment it was explained. 

Jeonghan would solely talk about his mother, and how beautiful she was. He’d explain how when the last time he spoke to her, she wasn’t dead, but that was when he was ten. He never would bring up his father, and anytime the conversation seemed to sway in that direction, Seungcheol would naturally curl a comforting hand around his. 

Joshua though, Joshua never brought up his family. If it began to slide into that conversation for him, he’d turn it around to talk about the methods of Paranormal Investigation, and his opinions on the movie Ghost Busters (It was all praise, but he never got tired of talking about it). 

That night as they sat next to Seungcheol’s car, sipping wine and listening to a bouncy Kpop song switch to a slow ballad, Joshua didn’t shy away from the topic. His lips were gently placed against the wine glass, provided by Jeonghan. Jeonghan was explaining about his mother, her kind eyes, her soft hair. Jeonghan described the final memory he had of her: The light-blue dress, blowing in the wind as she stood outside his school gates waving him off with a smile. Seungcheol was watching him with the most fond eyes, concentrating on every movement of his lips, fluttering of the eye lashes. 

Joshua’s eyes were focused on the phones they had placed between them on the picnic blanket when he spoke up; “ My mom has gorgeous light brown hair, it was knotty sometimes though.” 

The two others closed their mouths almost instantaneously. Their eyes zoning in on the boy who still held the wine glass a centimeter away from his lips. There was a tiniest hint of a smile. 

“ She’s really funny, made me laugh everyday as she told me stories. She used to high-five me everyday on my way to school, and hug me when I returned.” Joshua explained. He took a slight sip of the wine. “She made sure I went to church every Sunday. Had the priests take me under their wing to study the afterlife and spiritual beings. I wouldn’t be doing this now if it wasn’t for her.” 

Jeonghan spoke next. “ What about your dad?” 

Seungcheol hissed out a small “don’t” while gently shoving the questioning boy. 

Joshua smiled at them. “ He’s funny too. He taught me how to read and wouldn’t tell my mom that I was the one stealing the utensils from the kitchen for experiments in my room.” 

“You were a nerd even as a kid” Jeonghan teased. 

Joshua crinkled his nose with a shrug. 

Seungcheol rolled his eyes and sent the youngest a wink. “ Nerds are sexy though,”

Jeonghan gasped. “ Are you sexualizing him as a kid?” Seungcheol groaned gently shoving him again, a grin though evident on his face.

“ No. I was sexualizing him as he is now.” Seungcheol argued, but as the words sunk in, the eldest’s face slowly turned multiple shades of red. Jeonghan barked out a laugh, falling onto his back, not minding his hair falling into the grass. Joshua, who was about to put the wine glass down, froze mid movement his eyes wide. The youngest’s mouth falling open in shock as his own face blushed feverishly. 

The two blushing males waited for the dying of laughter Jeonghan to calm down before they could even think of talking about something else. As Jeonghan pushed himself back up, he pursed his lips and stared at Joshua.

“ So like, why didn’t you talk about them before?”

The boy in question shrugged, looking down to fiddle with a few loose threads on the blanket. “ I dunno. It’s just hard to talk about them, I haven’t spoken to them in a couple of years.”

Jeonghan propped one of his knees up, only to lean an arm on it as he listened. Seungcheol was staring with curious eyes at the youngest male. However, Seungcheol had his protective gaze on, ready to stop the conversation if Joshua seemed to need the conversation to come to a stop. 

At that moment though, the boy didn’t need it. 

Seungcheol asked the next question. “ Why don’t you guys talk anymore?”

“It’s weird now, we left each other on bad terms.” Joshua began. “ It’s not that they don’t love me, I’m sure they love me still. I just, we have a lot of differentiating opinions.” 

Jeonghan sighed, nudging the boy with a foot. “ Just tell us what happened.” 

Joshua let out a melancholic chuckle at the question. “ You have no patience.”

In retaliation, Jeonghan stuck his tongue out. No matter, Joshua decided to answer their questions. It was then they learned Joshua came from a middle class family in Los Angeles, he was raised by his parents and the church, and he wasn’t the most popular student in his school. At the church he was beloved because of his gentleness, kindness. The priests used him in almost any event, saying the boy had a gift to connect with the other side. (On many occasions, Joshua would entrance ghosts to come closer to him. The priests never knew why, but they never questioned it.) Overall, the story didn’t start off that deep, and was all things the two other males had already assumed of the youngest male. Although, their assumptions and his stories began to derail when he explained at sixteen he kissed a boy: It was a dare from a few of the more popular students for one of the male population kiss the unsuspecting Joshua. It was a game to the other students, but it became a catalyst for research for Joshua.

This fact caused a cheer of approval from Jeonghan, with a quiet, thumbs up from Seungcheol. Joshua, although smiled gratefully at them, still had a fairly solemn expression.

The kiss wasn’t bad, and that was why it was bad. Joshua recounted trying to research why it had felt nice, why he wanted to kiss other boys and why he never had this infatuation with females. He even hooked his long distance friend, Wendy, to try to help him understand. 

When he finally settled on accepting he was gay, it was time to figure out what his sexuality and his his religion’s relationship is exactly. Through internet forums he discovered his love for the same gender was a one ticket to hell, but through hours of reading the bible, translating older scriptures, and reading real people’s stories, he found it was indeed possible to love his religion and the same gender. 

He had come to terms with his sexuality, and as a result became relaxed with the conversation. However, he let it slip one day to a priest as he was practicing the motions for an exorcism. The priest’s hands had become frozen over the bible, his eyes staring at the boy in front of him with all the hopes in the world he was playing a joke. But teenage Joshua was not good with jokes. ( He wasn’t good with jokes really until he met Jeonghan, if he was to be honest.) 

Within seconds of telling the priests his revelation, the priest had taken him by his arms dragging him to the altar. Joshua was carelessly tossed in front of it, a bowl of holy-water being placed in front of him. The priest rapidly used his fingers to splash the water onto the boy’s face, waiting for a reaction. 

The confused boy, as a natural reflex of objects flying towards your eyes, flinched, turning his head away. The reaction was cause for the priest to riot. News of their precious connector of spirits had become possessed by a demon, forcing him to delve into sin such as homosexuality, spread quickly through out the church. He was sent home that day to talk with his family, while the priests announced they were going to separate him from the demon spirit with any means necessary. 

A week later he experienced what an exorcism is like first person. Joshua spared Jeonghan and Seungcheol these details, but the tears sneaking into the corner of the youngest boy’s eyes were description enough.

Joshua wasn’t stupid, so when he woke up three days later strapped to his bed, he told them he couldn’t wait to get a girlfriend. Not even an hour later they set him free with a party, and a new cross to dangle around his neck. 

That whole experience caused Joshua to research deeper into the paranormal, discovering how modern scientists have begun to use different methods. As he dived deeper into the possible psychological methods, Joshua would feel his stomach churn with the thought that people would continue to have to endure the pain, and torture that was the traditional method: Even when there was possibly no demon present.

At Joshua’s high school graduation, the boy stood proud outside of the gates of his school. His parents by his side, posed for his last high school picture together. Their arms were tightly wrapped around his shoulders, his mom’s lips pressed against his temple. As his classmate handed his camera to his mother, after having taken the photo, Joshua told them he was not going to the Catholic College he had agreed to attend. 

Instead he told him he was going to further his studies in engineering ( investing most time into paranormal studies) at a liberal arts school, and that he was not as straight as he would want them to be. 

Even though Joshua could see the red making it’s way through his father’s face, darkening as the seconds passed, Joshua couldn’t stay to take the heat. A classmate had grabbed him by the back of his cap, telling them the ceremony was about to start. 

When he went to grab his diploma, there wasn’t a single cheer. 

And when he packed his bags to leave his home, there wasn’t a single goodbye. Joshua had kissed his mother’s cheek gently, whispering “I love you”. Joshua had hugged his father, with an even quieter “I love you.”. However neither were reciprocated. 

And so when Joshua was driving alone on the highway, he whispered to himself; “ You’re going to be okay,” And didn’t look back.

As Joshua quieted down, letting them no the end of the story has arrived, Seungcheol had his arms curled around the younger tightly. The boy’s arms squeezed into his sides, as he his face was pressed against the strong chest. Jeonghan chugged down the last of his wine, wiping away any stray tears that left his eyes in the process. 

Joshua gently pressed his hand’s against Seungcheol’s waist to push back, the attention becoming too much for the boy, but Seungcheol tightened his grip for an extra few seconds. During those few seconds Seungcheol whispered;

“ You’re going to be great.” His lips hovered over the younger’s ear before pressing against his temple. “ You’re going to be great.” He repeated, softer.

 

And so, as Jeonghan’s mind drifted back to his current state, he glanced at Joshua. They were at the door to their RV, Seungcheol heading in first, when Jeonghan snatched Joshua’s arm hastily. The grabbed boy gasped softly staring at Jeonghan. Seungcheol only gave them half a glance before turning to walk back into the RV, leaving them to be alone. 

“I love you.” Jeonghan announced. 

Joshua chuckled and shook his head. “ I know, Jeonghan.”

“No.” Jeonghan countered, holding the boy tightly. “ I love you.”

“Jeonghan.”

“I love you, and you are going to be okay, and I’m sorry.” Jeonghan said. 

Joshua’s shoulders fell with a heavy breath. The youngest gazed at the longer haired boy for a second before smiling. “ And I love you too. So much. I also, really hope we don’t go to hell.” 

Jeonghan pecked the boy on the nose gently. “ I’ll only go if you are there, because hell to me is where you and Seungcheol aren’t.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Guess who is updating super early, and totally fucking up their schedule again!? Me! Honestly, I felt really bad just dropping off the last chapter like I did, and tried to hurriedly write this one, seeing how they are both on the same topic completely. This does show you though if I hadn't dropped off the last chapter when I did, you would not have received it until today or tomorrow. I have a method to my madness occasionally!
> 
> Anyway this chapter was completely back story for Joshua, a little for their relationship. Perks of having a nerdy character is that you can use them for technical plot explanation! HA! WOOT! Also that part is important, so hope you got that! (BTW It's really hard to write something in past tense, and then do a flashback, and then write a flashback like section with in the flashback. I felt like I was writing for How To Get Away With Murder)
> 
> What do you think of it? Is this what you thought Joshua's story was going to be? You know the basics of Seungcheol's, and now Joshua's... what's Jeonghan's I wonder. 
> 
> I may go around editing some of the chapters a bit in the next few days, but you never know. 
> 
> Please leave your refreshing and amazing comments down below to help me understand how the readers are enjoying (or not) my story. It means a lot!
> 
> Sincerely, 
> 
> V.AY


	11. Chapter 10: The Relationship

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seungcheol would then remember that giving up this life would mean nothing, for there was nothing for him to go back to. 
> 
> It wasn’t until he met Jeonghan, that Seungcheol’s life took a turn, and the concept of home was finally changed for the better.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: Do you see the mentions of child abuse tag that has been there since the second chapter was created? Yeah. It comes to play here. There is nothing graphic, but it is mentioned, reflected on and hinted at. If this is a difficult topic for you I will add a quick summary as to what happened in this chapter: I am also adding a couple of spaces between when it starts and finishes okay? However, the story barely speaks on what the man did to the character, and mostly talks about leaving the situation at hand. Again it is not graphic, I do not show any abuse, I hint at it and talk about what happened directly afterwards. 
> 
> Also this is not edited, and please read the ending's authors note.

Hours passed by in that RV, without problem. The boys were curled up on their bed, Jeonghan happily taking the middle. His back was pressed against the headboard, a laptop playing a disney movie, on his lap. Seungcheol curled up on his side, his head laying gently on the second eldest’s waist and a hand fiddling with Jeonghan’s fingers. Joshua had curled himself into a ball in Jeonghan’s side, his own fingers curled into the male’s shirt. Behind Seungcheol was a couple of abandoned plates filled with crumbs which once was delicious kimbap. 

Seungcheol had closed his eyes at some point, focusing on the humming from his lovers as they tried to quietly sing a long to the disney songs. The smallest smile was fighting to form on his lips, as the boys unconsciously harmonized. He breathed in the soft strawberry scent emanating from Jeonghan, sighing at the familiarity. It took a long time for Jeonghan to smell like home. 

Before, Jeonghan only smelled like Jeonghan, and that, that was not strawberries. He smelled like alcohol, and smoke, even though at the time he never even took even a sip of the drink. 

It took a couple of months on the road for the horrid unnatural scent to vanish to the wind, and the scent of strawberries began to fill the air. 

It took a couple of times for strawberries to suddenly smell like home.

It took Jeonghan to pepper kisses on his face desperately, for Seungcheol to suddenly become intoxicated. It took the intoxication to realize that was all he wanted.

And that is when Strawberries resembled home. 

Seungcheol nuzzled his face into Jeonghan’s side, erupting a small giggle from Jeonghan. The second eldest casually fiddled with the eldest’s hair, massaging his scalp softly. Seungcheol hummed with content before letting himself drift off into slumber. 

“There he goes.” Joshua whispered.

Jeonghan chuckled, agreeing. “There he goes.”

When Seungcheol woke up next, Jeonghan’s head was dangling seemingly, uncomfortably, while Joshua was no longer by their side. With a stretch of his arms, the eldest boy sat up in his spot, only to see Joshua at the sink of their kitchen, not even three feet away from the bed. Joshua was cleaning their dishes in the sink. It was then Seungcheol realized the plate of kimbap was gone. In fact, all of the lazily placed dishes were gone from sight, and the mess from earlier had vanished. The eldest chuckled as he saw a couple of garbage bags placed at the RV’s door. They youngest was always the most put together. At that, Seungcheol smiled and Joshua hummed. It was peaceful. It was like home. 

Seungcheol for years never felt at home. For the longest time his home was his car; his beat up blue car that should have been placed in the junk yard after his first car crash. It was a car that his father bought him years ago. It was the car he sold for this RV. 

Before meeting Jeonghan and Joshua, Seungcheol lived in that car. He had a camping set packed up in the trunk, and his electronics, with his blanket in his backseat. Occasionally he lived in hotels, but the moment he learned he could give his car WIFI was when hotels became more of a nuisance. He lived off tiny jobs, that gave him enough money for gas, and food. He had made friends with people throughout Korea when he lived there. It was to the point that even when he wasn’t looking for help, a friend would ask him to stay over and treat him to something. Seungcheol was content with his lifestyle.

But it didn’t feel like home.

Home originally felt like hugs, and tasted like slightly overcooked meals. It felt like a warmth in his chest when he opened the front door, and it was the slight aggravation of knowing he didn’t have the house to himself for the next few hours. Home was knowing his parents were ready to hug him every time his grades didn’t meet expectation.

However, home turned into blankets wrapped around his shoulders as he sat in the back of his car, and the taste of food from a gas station. It felt like a cold hand deciding if he should twist the knob to turn the heater on, and the aggravation of knowing he will only receive two carrots after helping a farmer for hours. Home turned into tuning out disappointment with his spotify playlist.

Home became survival. 

When Seungcheol first sold his family’s house, and most of their belongings, when he decided to give up his life as he knew it and live as a free spirit, Seungcheol was excited. The craving for freedom, and the addiction for wanderlust was in his family’s blood. Heading out on to the road, he imagined adventures of a life time, and stories he would be able to pass down from generation to generation. Instead Seungcheol found himself parking his car under street lamps for hours in the winter time to warm up his car, and using his laptop as a hand heater. He found himself relaxing at libraries even though he was not one to read, and parking his car under bridges. 

There were many times Seungcheol thought about giving up this life, selling his electronics to start a new once more and settle down. But Seungcheol would also think back to the car crash. He would think back to how his mother had turned around in the passenger seat to whisper her love, and send him last minute instructions. He would remember that he wouldn’t remember their last hug, or their voices. Instead he would remember their screams, and desperate apologies. Seungcheol would wonder if he was religious back then, and prayed for them to be okay, would all three of them have made it? 

Seungcheol would then remember that giving up this life would mean nothing, for there was nothing for him to go back to. 

It wasn’t until he met Jeonghan, that Seungcheol’s life took a turn, and the concept of home was finally changed for the better. 

Their meeting wasn’t conventional. Seungcheol wouldn’t even call it a meeting of any sorts. Had Seungcheol looked like a hero when they first met Joshua, Jeonghan would say he looked like a Guardian Angel when he met Jeonghan. 

 

 

The day they met, it was raining. Seungcheol was aimlessly driving down some streets in northern parts of the country. The streets were quiet. The houses were a little more down than average. The lights though were bright, and welcoming. 

The adventurous boy had his windows down, one of his arms dangling. The wind and rain brushing against his fingers. When he was younger his mother would have scolded him for it, it apparently wasn’t the most sanitary of actions. Seungcheol would do it anyway. He knew in this instance, an open window as it rained was not smart, but he argued with himself over the fact that was but a light drizzle. He won. As he drove he hummed, and listened to the world around him. It was getting later in the evening, but the birds were as busy as ever. The rain droplets on his window shield were musical beats. 

The peace he felt did not last though. His windshield wipers suddenly stopped working. Only slightly annoyed, Seungcheol pulled over on a random street and pushed himself out of his car, making sure to close the window. Curious, he fiddled with the wipers, testing if they were stuck. They were not. 

His confusion was derailed as he heard a couple of loud bangs of something hitting wood.. His head whipped up to see the house he had parked in front of. It was two stories, brown window shutters with a basic white paint job on the rest of the house. It was clear to Seungcheol that the paint was starting to chip away. What caught his interest though, was a window on the right side of the house. A young boy, with short black hair had one foot dangerously placed out of the window, balancing itself on a ledge. Two hands were braced on the shudders, pushing himself out. The movements were sloppy, careless, but determined. Seungcheol watched as the boy’s face made it into the dying sunlight; It was young, but there were tear streaks clearly outlined on his cheeks. His eyes were wide, and his mouth agape as if he was struggling to breathe. In the next second the boy was vanishing, as if pulled, into the house, a solid scream escaping the boy’s mouth. 

Seungcheol stared terrified. The window was slammed shut by an unknown force. Rubbing his own eyes, Seungcheol tried to process what he just saw, but before he could he heard a couple of more yells. That was all it took for Seungcheol to abandon his car on the road and sprint to the front door. 

The boy’s hands froze as it curled itself around the door knocker. He didn’t know what he was doing, or what mess he was getting into. He pondered if knocking on the door was even the right thing to do. Seungcheol could feel his heart beating out of his chest, his palms sweating. Just a moment prior he was ready to pounce into the house of a stranger, making assumptions of what was going on. To be honest, he did not even have an assumption. All he saw was a boy scream as he vanished into the darkness of the house, and all he knew was the scream was not from joy. 

When he heard a desperate cry, one that was too similar to his father’s for his own comfort, Seungcheol knocked on the door. He wondered if kicking it down would have been better. He then remembered he didn’t have money to pay for food, how would he pay for a new door? 

There was silence in the house, so Seungcheol knocked again. This time it was louder, more assertive. There was no way it went unheard. After a few moments, his hand ready to bang against the wooden door once more, it creaked open. An attractive tall man with a chiseled jaw, stood before him. He wore a dark suit, a tie slightly loosened. His eyes were in slits as they stared down at Seungcheol. 

The free spirited boy noted the clenched jaw, and the scarily tight grip on the edge of the front door. Seungcheol’s eyes zoned in on the red dots sprinkled across the calloused hand. 

Seungcheol’s heart had missed a beat. 

“What do you want?” The man asked. The voice was average, higher than Seungcheol was expecting, my not distracting. Half his body was covering any possible view of inside the house. 

“ I um,” Seungcheol started. His eyes wandered as he tried to get any glimpse of the boy he saw in the window. He spotted him right below the man’s arm, curled up against the walls. Hesitantly, the strange boy had lifted his head staring into Seungcheol’s eyes. “I-I just came to ask,”

“Are you going to spit it out or what? If you’re selling something then leave. I don’t want any.”

Seungcheol bit his lip. “ I heard some strange noises coming from here. I was just making sure there wasn’t um,”

“Wasn’t what?” The man glowered. 

With an awkward smile Seungcheol looked up at the man. “… like a murderer or a thief or something?”

The tall man scoffed before slamming the door in Seungcheol’s face. The shocked boy took a step back, eyes wide as he absentmindedly stared at the closed door. Uncomfortable, Seungcheol, slowly made his way back to his car. He sat himself into his seat, before driving around the corner. Once there, he parked it, staring at the empty street ahead. 

His mind raced with the situation at hand. He didn’t know the boy. He had no responsibilities in relation to the boy. In conclusion, he didn’t have to go back for the boy.

But Seungcheol pondered that no matter what, in the end he saw the boy. The boy existed, and that fact could not be ignored. 

Leaning his head against the steering wheel, Seungcheol thought about the boy’s face. His fingers absentmindedly tapped against the wheel, as he chewed on his bottom lip. After only a few moments, Seungcheol pushed himself up to sit straight, his eyes determined. 

“Okay.” He whispered to himself before sliding out of his car, leaving the keys in the ignition. “ It’s going to be okay.”

With heavy steps, Seungcheol made his way around the corner and down the street he was on just moments ago. His hands dug deep into his coat pockets. The street was quiet, Seungcheol noted. The whole time he had been in the neighborhood, only one other car had driven past him. As he made it to the house, Seungcheol felt his body shivering more than it was before. His hands practically trembling in their hiding spots. 

The young boy stared up at the house. His eyes traveled over every crevice, every crack, every plank of wood that seemed to be ready to fall any minute. His gaze froze on the window that caught his attention minutes before. There were curtains fluttering in front of the glass, but Seungcheol spotted the quick flash of light from the other side. It vanished quickly. Seungcheol assumed it was from a flashlight. 

Quietly, Seungcheol made his way over to the bushes right below the window. As he thought, Seungcheol bit on the tip of his thumb. His eyes analyzed the wall in front of me; his fingers could fit into some of the cracks, and his feet could balance on the edge of the windows, but he worried about his own strength. Would he be able to push himself onto the roof of the first floor, and be able to open the window? 

A cold breeze brushed against him as he stood there. A sign, Seungcheol thought. A sign to get a move on. 

“ I had a good life, I guess.” Seungcheol muttered to himself as he lifted a foot onto an edge of the window. One of his hands curled around a breaking board before he pushed himself up. With every single movement, a tiny creak followed. Seungcheol held his breath, counting his prayers. As he reached the top, Seungcheol had a death grip on the shutters placed on his goals. 

Shyly, Seungcheol knocked on the door. Seungcheol heard a soft intake of breath on the other side, and Seungcheol only prayed that he went to the right window. For all he knew this could be an upstairs living room, or worse, the father’s room. Against his better judgement, he knocked again with more determination. Seungcheol watched as the curtains fluttered, before showing the young male face from before. The boy in the room’s eyes were wide as they took in the sight in front of him, before narrowing quickly. 

Rather rashly, the young boy slid open his window. He leaned an elbow against it before turning his attention to Seungcheol. His voice was slightly high pitched, teasing, “Well hello there Romeo, got the wrong house do ya?”

The color red slowly crept across Seungcheol’s cheeks, but he kept his voice steady. “ Not if you’re my Juliet.” 

The boy’s eyes widened, lips gapping open slightly as he stared in a amazement. Seungcheol watched in amusement as the boy’s eyes fluttered confused, and his head twitched as if trying to compute what just happened. However as fast the boy’s eyes changed to flustered, they switched back to annoyed. 

“Whatever,” The boy scoffed. “ Ailee is next door if you’re looking for her. Now leave. You can’t be here.” 

“Ailee?” Seungcheol asked, his head tilting slightly. 

“Pretty girl? Hell of a good voice? Next door. Bye.” The boy explained before pushing his head back into his house, hands already pushing the window down. 

“Wait.” In a panic, Seungcheol pushed his hands underneath the window, ready to hold it open. However, in the young boy’s attempt to slam the window, Seungcheol felt his hand get crushed under the weight. Seungcheol took in a deep breath as he tried to control his next choice of words.

“Open.” He breathed unsteadily. “ The. Window.” 

Slowly, the young boy slid the window back open. His eyes wide with concern. “ Are… are you okay?” He asked. Seungcheol stared at the other boy, as if to say “ Fuck no,” but he responded with a different method;

“ Just fine. Are you?” 

Once again, it seemed Seungcheol’s words stunned the boy. After a few moments of silence, the boy pushed the window open wider. His eyes scanning the strange boy on the roof, from head to toe. “What do you want?”

Seungcheol gently rubbed his bruising fingers as he responded. “ Honestly, I came here on a whim. I just… I saw you trying to climb out the window earlier and I,”

The boy interrupted him; “ And you what? Got curious? Got a hero complex? Is this a prank?”

“ Not a prank. I swear.” Seungcheol quickly defended himself. “ I just, okay. Hi, I’m Seungcheol.” He reached his abused hand out, letting it hang empty in front of the young boy. The said boy only spared a single glance at the hand before crossing his own arms across his chest. 

“ And why are you here Seungcheol?”

Seungcheol bit his lip and awkwardly shrugged, letting his ignored hand fall limp. “ Usually people respond with saying their own name, but whatever.” He pouted, before continuing. “ But I don’t know, I just. I think, you need to leave. Leave this house.” 

The boy scoffed. “ And why do you think that?”

“Didn’t that man hit you?” He decided ripping off the bandaid was the best solution. “ If he did, if he is hurting you. You need to leave.”

The boy’s eyes narrowed, and his arms tightened around himself, as if they would guard him from the truth. “ What the fuck? You have no idea whats going on here.” The boy growled out. 

Seungcheol’s eyes softened, a gentle hand reaching out the boy. “ Does he hurt you?”

The boy shrugged, glancing off in the distance. “ Go the fuck away, none of this concerns you.” 

Despite the order, Seungcheol kept his feet planted. “ Do you, feel safe here?”

“Doesn’t fucking matter.” 

“Are you happy here?”

“I will slam the window on your arm.” He threatened.

“ If you’re not happy, come with me.” Seungcheol offered.

There was a second of silence, before the boy spoke; “ Who the fuck do you think you are?” Even though the words held venom with every syllable, and the stare was cold, Seungcheol noticed the boy’s hand twitch momentarily, in the direction of his outstretched arm. 

“ I think I am Seungcheol.”

The boy let out a choked laugh. “ Oh my god, are you insane? Leave.”

Seungcheol’s hand slowly fell down once more. His shoulders slumped. “ I know, I know this is weird. I know you don’t know me, but please. Don’t stay here if you don’t feel safe. If you leave with me, I’ll just drive you to the train station, the police, an orphanage-,”

“I’m too old for an orphanage.” The boy commented. “I’m nineteen.”

Seungcheol watched the boy carefully. “ Then why are you still here?”

He shrugged. “ I’m not good at anything, I can’t do anything.”

Seungcheol’s heart tightened at those words. “ Why do you think that?”

The boy shrugged, but the drifting gaze to the door, answered the question better than words could have. Seungcheol nodded, the wheels in his head turning. 

“ Weren’t you trying to leave earlier?” Seungcheol asked. The boy turned his head away, the silent treatment. “ You also know you can’t stay here. It’s not safe, it’s not fair to you.”

“ But what would I even do Seungcheol?” The boy asked. “ I’m a high school drop out with no job experience. I have no choice but to stay.”

Seungcheol quickly shook his head. “ You may think that, but I promise you, I swear to you, your life can get so much better, if you just leave this house.”

“Why do you even care? You don’t know me.”

“ Does that matter?” Seungcheol offered a warm smile. “ Sometimes, people do nice things because it’s the right thing to do.. and sometimes, sometimes being nice defies logic but that does not mean it is wrong.”

No response. 

 

 

Seungcheol sighed, and began to slid himself away from the window. “ My car is parked around the corner. I’ll stay there for the next twelve hours or whatever. Come over if you want to leave.” 

As Seungcheol moved, a hand quickly reached out and grabbed his arm. “ Wait.”

With hopes that boy would leave with him, seungcheol smiled up at the boy. Instead, an umbrella was pushed into his arms. 

“You’re stupid for walking in the rain.” Was all the other boy said before shutting the window closed.

And Seungcheol did exactly what he said; he curled up in the back seat of his car. Softly he played music, as he curled into his towel that was wrapped around himself. He knew this was not the safe place to park; if a police car came over he would surely get a ticket, and the families in the neighborhood may find it suspicious of a grown man sitting in his car for hours. No matter, Seungcheol kept to his word. 

At one point, he had fallen asleep, and only awoke because there was a loud banging on his window. Groggily, Seungcheol sat up in his car. His music playlist had reached its end, but that was not important. What was important, was the black haired boy, with a bleeding lip, shivering outside of his car. In one rapid motion, Seungcheol swung the back door open, gesturing for him to come in. Awkwardly, the other boy slid in, but before he could talk, Seungcheol draped his towel around the boy.

 

While he slept the rain had turned into a thunderstorm. 

“ I want to leave.” The boy muttered, holding the towel up to his face. “ I want to be safe, please.” His voice was soft, trembling. Any sass from hours before was wiped away. His shivering body, curled up into the corner of the seat, imitated a scared child too much for the oldest boy’s liking. Seungcheol nodded his head and climbed into the front seat. He made sure to turn the heater on, before shifting gears and pressing his foot against the pedal. 

The drive was silent, and directionless. Seungcheol had yet to hear where the boy wanted to go, so he decided to drive until the boy felt he was safe. The oldest male, would not necessarily say he felt uneasy about the situation.He had done much worse. He had gotten himself into dangerous situations before. He had let drunk strangers sit in his car, as if he was a taxi service, solely because he thought it would be better if someone he knew wouldn’t take advantage of those not in the right mind. He trusted himself, more than he could ever trust someone else. 

After a half hour, the boy finally spoke. Seungcheol didn’t know what he was expecting the first words to be; maybe regret, or an apology. Maybe he was expecting a destination. However the first words were spoken with a trembling voice, and a tired lisp. 

“My name is Jeonghan.”

That’s how it all started. During the first few months, Seungcheol could only define Jeonghan as interesting. The first month of their friendship, Jeonghan was paranoid about every street, and every strong adult male. He was weary of cellphones, scared his father had figured out how to contact him. He struggled with being alone in any store for over five minutes. Seungcheol found he had to be extra careful of following all of the street laws; Jeonghan would become agitated, anxious, alert the moment he thought passing a stop sign was a good idea. To be fair, it was past midnight, and there was not a car on the street as far as the eye could see. But, the lecture he received from Jeonghan minutes afterwards, was enough for Seungcheol to stop ignoring the laws.

Although, at the same time, Jeonghan was snarky and angry. He easily would pick fights with Seungcheol, showing no mercy with the insults he would throw towards him. If Seungcheol was nearby, Jeonghan would be able to hold pleasant conversations with strangers, without a sarcastic remark. When low on cash, Jeonghan often batted his eye lashes and grinned at a female employee. 

He was able to hold himself up with pride and show no fear one minute, but be wrapping his arms around Seungcheol’s waist protectively, body shaking, the next.

As the months passed, Jeonghan smelled less and less of alcohol. It was a year into their friendship when Seungcheol woke up, behind the steering wheel, that he finally caught whiff of the new scent. Joshua was curled up into a ball in the backseat, clutching the same book he had when they first met him. Jeonghan was stretched out in the passenger seat, his legs propped up on the air bag box. The air conditioner was blowing softly, but it forced a subtle scent to make its way to Seungcheol’s nose. 

It had been a while since his car smelled like anything besides their daily take-out and oil. So, when Seungcheol was woken by the aroma, he was slightly on guard. He was confused, alert, but curious. He sniffed the air, trying to follow the path to the origin. Eventually he found himself incredibly close to the side of Jeonghan’s head. He stared at the soft black hair curiously; it had gotten longer. However, he was pulled out of his thoughts as a soft voice reached his ears;

“ Seungcheol… what are you even doing?” Joshua had asked, an eyebrow raised. Seungcheol shot back into his seat, his own face reddening as the seconds pass.

“Nothing.” He quickly responded.

“Yeah… you’re weird.” Joshua mumbled, before curling back up into a ball. Letting out a large sigh, Seungcheol relaxed his shoulders.

But when did all this finally become home? 

There was never an exact moment when he realized it, but there were moments where he felt it. It started happening when Joshua had actually unpacked his backpack. His stuff had begun to blend in with Seungcheol’s and Jeonghan’s. The concept started to bloom when Seungcheol would wake up to soft whispers from Jeonghan, a third filled bowl of ramen in his lap- the other 2/3s shared amongst the others. 

The term family was created when Seungcheol slid into the car one day, groceries in hand, only to see a crying Joshua in the back seat and a panicked Jeonghan in the front:  
“ I didn’t do anything.” Jeonghan had announced. His hands were held up in front of himself, defensive. Joshua lifted his own hands to cover his face, his ears turning red. 

“ What happened?” Seungcheol had asked. Joshua just shook his head, his shoulders shaking. 

It took ten minutes of Seungcheol hugging the boy, and Jeonghan occasionally offering nonsense to try to comfort him, before Joshua was comfortable to open his mouth to speak. The words he began to spew were the catalyst to their new life;

He retold his story, his life before Seungcheol and Jeonghan. He talked about what he has learned, and what he was thankful for. He explained how he was intimated by Jeonghan when they first met, fascinated by Seungcheol, and how it slowly changed as they bonded. He teased about the habits the boys had that drove him crazy.

But then he confessed.

He confessed that his heart couldn’t stay still when he looked at the two of them. He whispered about the way his eyes were hypnotized every time Jeonghan performed for them in empty parking lots. He babbled on about how his ears were blessed by every bit of information Seungcheol shared and then he cried about how he knew he would have to leave after his confession. 

And he apologized, and apologized, and apologized. 

And then Jeonghan cried and leapt across the seats to bundle the blubbering boy into his arms. 

Seungcheol told him that he wouldn’t know what to do if either of them ever left. 

They slept together in the backseat that night. 

Still, the concept of home had to be changed fully. Seungcheol still woke up every night expecting them to have left, to see an empty seat beside him. Those days that the passenger seat was void of anything, he’d be spooked by a tapping on the glass beside him. Jeonghan would stand there with a couple cups of coffee. 

There was another night that Seungcheol remembers his heart fluttering around the idea of family: It was a few months into their Paranormal Investigator business. They had finally found a real ghost haunting someone’s house and they were extremely overzealous about the information. Joshua especially was bouncing off the walls. However, Seungcheol found himself becoming too energetic, and doing risky things to get the ghosts attention. It ended with everyone safe, and the ghost captured, however Jeonghan had put his foot down that night. 

He had screamed at Seungcheol for thirty minutes in their hotel room-Joshua was distracting himself with the footage for their blog. Seungcheol knew he was supposed to be upset, ashamed, argumentative even, but as he stared at the boy in front of him all he could think of was: “ He cares so much.”

A goofy grin had made its way onto Seungcheol’s face as the second eldest spoke, only infuriating the male even more. The extra ten minutes of scolding was worth the five minutes of a red faced Jeonghan, after Seungcheol told him why he couldn’t help but to smile.

Those were the good days at least.

There were days where Seungcheol wondered if it was their last night together; It was usually in the winter, when they couldn’t find any odd jobs to keep them from starving.

Seungcheol remembered laying curled up in the backseat one day, shivering under their blankets and Joshua’s jacket. The youngest male had squeezed himself into the floor space between the front and back seat, a hand fiddling with Seungcheol’s hair worryingly. The windows of the car were fogged over, the car engine off. If Seungcheol remembered correctly, they were out of gas. Jeonghan was outside trying to convince some people for some money for food. Joshua was outside earlier trying to find a store to get some medicine. 

He felt terrible during those freezing hours, but when Jeonghan joined them in the car later, he felt comfy. He would almost say he felt at home, with Joshua’s body wrapped around him as if he was another blanket like he was. 

There were other days though, Seungcheol struggled to understand how to be a family. A night that still haunts him to this day was Joshua and Jeonghan practically at each others throats. He can’t for the life of himself remember why they were fighting, but the topic had strayed by the time the memory began. Jeonghan was pulling out every painful memory, every hurtful word he could to get Joshua to stand down. Joshua never specifically said anything, but when fighting with Jeonghan that was a terrible thing to do.

To Jeonghan that was as if he wasn’t worth the fight, and Joshua knew this. 

Through the fight though, through all of the screaming and name-calling, Seungcheol could still see the careful eyes. He could see them constantly scanning to see if they hit a nerve, if they pressed too hard, if they strayed too far. Even so, Seungcheol felt a knot twisting in his stomach. All he could think about was the chance that one of them would take that step out of bounds, would choose the wrong wording, turn their face the wrong way and cause a tear to spill down a cheek. 

He trusted they loved each other enough that they wouldn’t do that; He trusted that two years of a concrete relationship ( Over a year and a half of friendship, a couple of months of relationship) had the foundations to hold their house together in the event of an earthquake. Seungcheol was aware though a wrecking ball could take it down in seconds. 

So as they fought, he wondered if he should step in. He questioned if he even had a right to partake. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t tried earlier. His prior attempts were met with glares and a sassy hand firmly placed in front of his eyes. At that moment he felt it safe to say that he was not meant to intervene. But that was when the fight was on topic, about ghosts, or kitchen supplies, or whatever. What he was dealing with had changed, and so Seungcheol sat on his car hood as they argued. 

It wasn’t until Jeonghan had grabbed Joshua’s wrist, and straightened his back as he looked at the younger boy, that Seungcheol decided enough was enough. If before, the two got into a fight and Jeonghan grabbed the younger in any form, Joshua would just stare confused: It was an intimidation factor that didn’t work the way it was supposed to, but even so Jeonghan felt terrible for using it afterwards.

As Seungcheol prepared to slide off the hood of his car, Joshua had shocked them both and grabbed the opposing arm and twisting it away from him. “I’m not weaker than you. I’m just nicer than you.” Joshua had sneered out. 

And those were the final words of the fight. Joshua had marched away to a nearby bar where he only ordered a tea (much to the bartenders frustration), and Jeonghan had slumped against the hood of the car beside Seungcheol.

It was then Seungcheol had to figure out how to comfort them, how to fix it, and how a family actually works before anything fell apart. 

And he did. He learned: He comforted an overworked, crying Jeonghan. Dragged the boy to the bar the youngest went and had them chat, before Seungcheol decided that Joshua and him were going to curl up in the hotel room and chat for a bit. While they did so Jeonghan was going to go grocery shopping- or any type of shopping- before joining them up for a movie.

It became a rule to not go to bed angry.

Seungcheol likes to think that that rule, is what made them start to act as a family.

 

So when Joshua finished cleaning the dishes, and crawled onto the bed once again, Seungcheol’s heart warmed. He watched as the youngest slowly move Jeonghan under the covers, placing the head gently against the pillows. Joshua glanced up at Seungcheol once he was done and mouthed a silent ‘ I love you’ before curling up under the covers. Seungcheol smiled to himself as he made himself comfortable with an arm stretched across his two boyfriends. Anything could happen, and they would make it to the next day stronger because they refuse to go to bed angry; At least that was Seungcheol’s last thought as he drifted to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone. It has been a long ass time. I have moved, sort of and I am exhausted. Before I go into detail of some stuff I want to talk about, a quick summary:
> 
> Seungcheol, Jeonghan, Joshua all watch a movie together. While being domestic, Seungcheol thinks back on what exactly a family is and remembers when he met Jeonghan : A teenager suffering from domestic abuse. They escape together. Seungcheol continues to ponder the concept of family and when he started to correlate his two boyfriends with it.
> 
> SUMMARY DONE
> 
> NOW! What did you guys think of the chapter? I am so sorry it is not ghosty. IF you can't tell the main story has a lot of factors....   
> What do you think of their relationship? 
> 
> Do you know what next chapter is? Hint hint hint ((((((((( It's what y'all have been waiting for... maybe)))))))))
> 
> Also, I want to take this time to apologize for the late posting of a couple of weeks. On top of moving, I have been working, meeting up with family I haven't seen in a year and going through some issues which were not fun. 
> 
>  
> 
> Let me talk to you guys about Relationships (Mainly breaking up):  
> 1) This past week I was talking to a friend who has been staying in a relationship she doesn't want to be in, because the other person will threaten with suicide. Now if this is the case for you, I'll tell you the same thing I told her, at the end of the day your own life is the most important. You get yourself out of an unhappy, unhealthy relationship. You are not helping them nor yourself by staying in that relationship. Second, when breaking up with them, make sure to tell their support system and loved ones what the situation is so they can keep an eye out on the person. Sometimes even getting police and professionals involved are necessary, but once again do what you feel is right, that is also a healthy option for yourself.
> 
> 2) Polyamorous relationships: If you are not a polyamorous person but wish to try it because you are not sure that is not a problem. However make sure your partners are all aware of this, and you have constant communication. I had to comfort a friend who thought they were dating this girl for a couple of months only to learn that the other person kind of forgot they were dating. You are not selfish nor attention-seeking to ask questions and to request confirmation of the relationship. If you feel unsure, make sure to ask. 
> 
> 3) I had to convince my friend two weeks ago to end an unhealthy relationship which I should have stopped months ago. I saw the warning signs, but he was so happy so I didn't think I should do anything. However I realized later he wasn't that happy, that he gave up an amazing job opportunity because his partner doesn't like it, and has been put down for his humor throughout the relationship. (This guy's humor is innocent and sweet and never is at the expanse of another human being.) The hard part was the other person in the relationship is also a friend of mine. So at the same time I had to go confront her about her actions.   
>  If you find your friend is in an unhealthy relationship, or being unhealthy in a relationship confront them; Confront them before it starts to seem incredibly personal and like an attack on who they are... If someone needs help, please help them. That's for those who you know are good people but have been using unhealthy coping mechanisms also. 
> 
> Relationships are hard and never perfect. They can be fun and filled with rainbows, but then there are a lot of hard parts... don't give up because of those. You fight with your friends or loved ones, but that doesn't mean it is the end of the friendship right? Just take it one step at a time, learn to talk things through. 
> 
> what I stress today is, just own up to your actions, own up to who you are, and constantly strive to improve yourself. 
> 
> None of us are perfect but that doesn't mean we can give up right?
> 
> Honestly though you guys have all been amazing... Thank you for reading this even after the break. I'll try to get back into the swing of things. (I'm exhausted)
> 
> Sincerely,
> 
> V.AY


	12. Chapter 11: Angel Vs Demon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “ It’s not fine ‘shua.” Jeonghan stood his ground. Joshua only hid his face into the arm more, but Jeonghan could only sigh. “ You know I never want to hurt you right?”
> 
> There was a noise similar to whine emitted from Joshua’s lips.  
> “ Joshua?” Jeonghan whispered. 
> 
> “Mhm?”
> 
> “You know that right?”
> 
> “Yes.” 
> 
> Jeonghan smiled, pressing his lips against the other’s forehead. “ Good.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: More graphic violence than in other chapters is prevalent in this one. Please be cautious when reading.  
> Also it isn't edited... so read with caution for that too.....

Joshua was the first to wake up the following day. Although he wished to bask under the sunlight's gently shimmering across them, Joshua begrudgingly let his eyes flutter open to start the day instead. Sliding his arm from across Jeonghan’s chest back to himself, the youngest slowly sat up. As he stretched, Joshua began to make a mental list in his head. 

He knew it was important but they all had yet to talk about the events of last night, and Joshua was not about to let them talk about it yet. That note was moved to the end of his list. What took precedence was going back to the house; The previous night may have been terrifying, traumatizing even, but Joshua found his curiosity winning over all other emotions. 

His mental listing came to a halt when he noticed a half awake grumble come from Seungcheol. He was not yet awake, but he was definitely close to it. At that, Joshua slid off the bed, flinching slightly at the cold floor. He made his way over to the kitchen, diving into the fridge to make breakfast. It only took the smell of an egg sizzling for Seungcheol to actually sit up, a hand unconsciously finding its way to Jeonghan’s. Joshua knew that the intertwined fingers meant Seungcheol had decided that Jeonghan that morning was more important than helping with breakfast.

Joshua completely understood. 

Once the food was completely plated, Seungcheol woke Jeonghan up.

Compared to the past few days, breakfast was calm. Jeonghan had a soft smile on his face as he watched his boyfriends eat. Joshua felt full just watching his boyfriends smile. Seungcheol felt his shoulders relax for the first time in weeks when Joshua and Jeonghan would laugh. 

It was when Jeonghan began cleaning up as the other two got changed for the day, did Seungcheol feel his shoulders tense once more.

Seungcheol was half naked, struggling to pull a pair of tight, ripped jeans on - the jeans were Jeonghan’s but Joshua watched from the bed in amusement, instead of telling him. The entertained boy was already dressed with a pair of mint-green shorts on and a white tee. Jeonghan had decided he’d rather dirty the pajamas while cleaning the dishes, and then change, so dressed in his shorts and large-shirt he stood busy, in the kitchen. 

“So, I was thinking,” Jeonghan started.

“That’s,” Seungcheol grunted as he pulled the pants to his thigh with difficulty. “ That’s dangerous.”

Jeonghan side-eyed him, noticing the jeans, before glancing at Joshua. The youngest put a finger to his lips, silently pleading for the second eldest not to spill the secret, which Jeonghan abided by. 

“ Yeah, anyway. I was thinking that before going to the house, we should go back to the church.” Jeonghan announced. Joshua scrunched up his nose at the words. “ What’s with your reaction, ‘shua?”

Joshua shrugged before glancing down at his feet. “ I got a weird feeling when I was in there.”

“And I think I’m loosing feeling with these jeans, did I gain weight or something?” Seungcheol groaned as he then struggled to tug them off. 

The other two chuckled as they watched the eldest sit himself on the corner of the bed. Seungcheol desperately began tugging at the hems before letting his arms fall defeated at his side. 

“ You didn’t gain weight Seungcheol,” Jeonghan noted. “ Stop rushing it and slide it off from the bottom, Joshua go help him.”

The conversation was put on hold as Joshua kneeled in front of Seungcheol and curled his fingers around the pockets. As Seungcheol’s legs were freed from the pants, Seungcheol grinned. From his place on the ground, Joshua began to fold the jeans to put away, laughing at the immature jokes Seungcheol was telling him. The moment he placed the pants to the side, Joshua felt a slightly rough hand caress his cheek. Glancing up from under his lashes, Joshua watched as Seungcheol leaned over, his lips just centimeters away. The youngest’s toes curled as he unfolded his own legs slightly, meeting the older halfway. Their lips met with a smile. Seungcheol let his arm curl around the boy’s shoulders, bringing him against his own chest tighter. At the feeling, Joshua’s smile only grew, his eyes fluttering shut, as his hands rested on the older’s knees. 

“Nope. No. No. No.” Jeonghan interrupted, as he tossed a dish rag at Seungcheol’s head. “ We are not doing that this morning.” 

A silly grin was still on Seungcheol’s face, as he pulled the rag from his head. The second eldest was only a foot away now, clearly not trusting his aim to throw from a far. Knowing he was playing a dangerous game, Seungcheol spread a leg out and wrapped it around Jeonghan’s, tugging him forward. Jeonghan stumbled forward, but kept his arms crossed. A challenging stare traveled from Jeonghan’s eyes to Seungcheol’s. Joshua leaned back on to the palm of his hands amused. 

“ You’re usually the one jumping for this.” Seungcheol teased, a hand coming to wrap around Jeonghan’s waist. Joshua watched as Jeonghan’s eyes fluttered to Seungcheol’s lips. “ What’s the change?”

The youngest was ready to bet that Jeonghan was going to push Seungcheol on the bed, lips attached as they fell. He would have had his coins on the table, about to call an “all in”, when Jeonghan gently combed his fingers into Seungcheol’s hair. Instead, the boy’s gaze hovered over to Joshua. Confused, Joshua smiled up at the male, hoping it was encouraging, friendly, loving.

“ We need to go to the church.” Jeonghan mumbled. “We need to fix all of this.”

Joshua’s smile wavered, which didn’t go unnoticed by the other two. Seungcheol reached out, squeezing the smaller boy’s shoulder gently. The next few moments were quiet: Seungcheol stood up, finding his clothes buried in their suitcase. Jeonghan grabbed the abandoned pair of pants from the floor, and moved to change into his own clothes. Joshua sat himself at their dining table, fiddling with his fingers. 

The youngest boy watched as his right hand began to tap uncontrollably on the table; His left fingers scratching softly at the surface. Joshua stared at the two hands in confusion. 

Joshua liked to think he knew himself well. He knew he was compulsive with research, and tinkering. He knew he had a tendency to put technology over any other aspect of the world. He knew he was too trusting of people, and ghosts. He knew since he was a child, ghosts were attracted to him. Most importantly, he knew he loved Seungcheol and Jeonghan more than answers to any questions, more than his gadgets, more than his career, more than the world. 

Joshua liked to think he knew his boyfriends well too. He knew Jeonghan liked vanilla more than chocolate. He knew he hated a dirty anything, and would complain until someone cleaned it up. He knew Jeonghan only really had fun flirting with Seungcheol and Joshua. Joshua knew Seungcheol was forgetful, that he was rational but greedy. He knew Seungcheol was easy to entertain. He knew that selling the car for the RV meant more to him than he let on- They met in that car. 

Finally, Joshua liked to think he knew their relationship: One on one time was never to seclude the other, but to strengthen bonds. Movie night after someone is mad was the easiest way to calm someone down. Never put ice-cream in the back of the freezer. Never go to bed angry at the others. 

He thought everything with them was pretty clear but recently, he worried he was missing something. 

It was not just one thing that sparked this confusion; Joshua picked up evidence from many places. Many times the youngest had tried to tell himself it was all coincidental, meaningless conclusions from meaningless moments in time. However, Jeonghan’s face in the bedroom was proving otherwise. 

Joshua trusted Jeonghan, but the boy wondered if he really did only faint at the museum that day. The youngest had fainted before, knew the symptoms, remembered the feeling of vertigo and a twisting stomach. He has no such memory of the museum though. 

He really did trust Jeonghan, but he was always curious as to why the scratch on the back of Jeonghan’s neck never healed, nor did the second eldest ever tell them. In most cases, Jeonghan would love the attention from his boyfriends.

He truly trusted Jeonghan, but Joshua doesn’t understand why Jeonghan called him a demon. He trusted Seungcheol too, but he wondered why he didn’t look that shocked. He thought he had more control over himself, but he remembers himself going to ask Jeonghan why he said that, but instead hissed out an “ I’ll see you in hell…”

And Joshua thought he knew himself, but the past week had proven otherwise. He thought he had a great memory, but he keeps finding moments of the week lost to space. He didn’t remember the actual meeting in the church, only arriving and leaving. He didn’t remember leaving the RV to go to the house, only arriving at the house.

The last moment he remembers being completely in control, was when he had Seungcheol in his arms, holding him from jumping over the balcony to the ghost of his parents. He remembers feeling full, at one with himself, and yet so stressed. Any other time, he had felt dazed.

What Joshua thought was even worse, was that he felt he suddenly had less control over his hands. They would fiddle more, tap more, scratch more. He was always one with a need to complete or to do something. However, the past few days made him feel disconnected. 

His hands always reaching out to do something, but Joshua internally, only wanted to watch a movie. 

It was all of this that made Joshua wonder if he was lost, or missing something. 

He trusted his boyfriends, but he knew they knew what this something was. So as he watched his fingers dance across the table, Joshua sighed. 

He didn’t want to go to the church, but perhaps they would give him the answers his boyfriends refused to tell him. 

After an even fifteen minutes, the other two were done. Quickly, they grabbed their bags and began their walk to the church. As they moved, Jeonghan muttered out complaints of the heat. Seungcheol’s laughter was the only response Jeonghan received. 

As they walked in, they found they were not alone. Scattered throughout the room were people of all ages, their heads down, and prayer hands up. A priest was standing in the front carefully talking to a child, who had tears streaming down his face. 

Jeonghan watched the scene curiously. At first look it seemed sweet, but Jeonghan noticed the awkward hand motions, the curling and uncurling of the fingers. He rolled his eyes when he saw the slight panic in the priest’s eyes. When the child hugged the priest goodbye and sprinted off, Jeonghan made his way over to him. 

Joshua on the other hand felt his body tripling in weight. Every step feeling as if he was dragging a boulder attached at his hips. As his legs shook, Seungcheol made sure to wrap an arm around the younger’s waist, a confused and concerned expression clear on the elder’s face. Joshua wanted to smile at him, comfort him, and explain it was not a big deal. However, the ability to form words suddenly was loss to him. He would have been panicking if it wasn’t for the fact this happened the last time he was there.

He knew he shouldn’t have come to the church.

“ What was that about?” Joshua heard Jeonghan ask the priest. The man in question laughed softly. 

“ I have done this job for over thirty years, and when ever a child cries I still panic.” The man sighs. “ One never wants to see a child cry. It’s, it is painful.”

Not completely satisfied with the answer, yet not curious enough to question further, Jeonghan only nodded. The priest gently dusted his robes before descending down the stairs to meet with Jeonghan. Seungcheol stood behind him, holding onto the youngest tightly to his side. 

“ Now why are you three here today? If you wish to pray, there are plenty of seats available. Bibles are on every chair, and God is watching from every window.” The priest smiles charmingly at Jeonghan. “ But if not, I am at a loss. We do not have a service until much later tonight, and none of you are here for a christening I presume.” 

Jeonghan returned the smile, warmly. “ No, we aren’t. Is there a more, private, place we can speak? I don’t want to interrupt anyone’s sessions…” 

The priest’s smile faltered slightly, but he nodded none-the-less. “ Follow me.”

The priest turned on his heel, leading them down a hallway, into another with multiple doors. Joshua, as he stumbled through, took glances through the windows. Most of the rooms they passed were classrooms for many different ages. The others were meeting rooms. Finally, they arrived at a door with a long sign with the translation of “Office” written in four different languages. Joshua couldn’t help but to smile at that.

Seungcheol couldn’t help but to hug him tighter at the smile. 

The office they walked into was simple, a table and chair facing away from heightened windows. A cross hanging delicately in the middle of the glass. A computer and photos of what Jeonghan assumed were pictures of family were placed on the desk. A bible was lazily placed on the edge of the table on the side closer to the door. Two tables were strategically put in front of the desk, facing the windows. 

The priest moved around the table quietly, before sitting in his seat and signaling for the three to sit themselves. The three males exchanged glances. Automatically the eldest forced Joshua into one of the seats. Jeonghan placed a palm on the younger’s shoulders for an extra measure. After another few moments of mental communication, Seungcheol finally took the other seat. With a smirk, Jeonghan lifted a leg and sat on the arm of Joshua’s chair. None of the boys missed the slight eyebrow twitch on the priest’s forehead. 

“So,” The priest started. “What is this about? Is it about the child again?”

As Jeonghan responded, he gently threaded his fingers through Joshua’s hair. “ No, not exactly.” 

The priest’s eyes zoned in on Joshua. The young boy’s face was flushed, hands nervously tapping at his kneecaps, and yet was still sat perfectly: His back straight, legs together. The shoulders seemed to have deflated the moment Jeonghan’s fingers had entangled with his brown locks. 

“ I want to talk about possession.” Jeonghan spoke. 

The priest’s gaze switched targets, and sighed. “ I’ve already told you everything I know.”

“Yes, but last time you talked about how there are other things demons can do. If not physically possessing someone, they can make deals, or agreements, or choose someone or something. What does that even mean? What is that called?” Jeonghan questioned. Seungcheol’s eyes widened as he listened to the other boy; Seungcheol wondered how much the beautiful boy was thinking of this. 

“ And how does this deal with the child, or not exactly the child? Why is this of any importance? You three are paranormal investigators are you not? You get rid of them. Why does it matter?” The priest asked. 

Jeonghan licked his lips impatiently. “ I’m trying to understand the differences here. What if you have been trying to treat a child for possession when he made an agreement or something? What if the devil chose him? How does one get chosen? How do we know?” 

There was panic in his voice.

The priest leaned forward on his desk. “ It seems like this has become personal for you. Who is this kid to you?”

Seungcheol glanced at Jeonghan through the corner of his eye. The male had the idle fingers curled tightly into his ripped jeans. Beside him, Joshua watched dazed and confused, it was clear his breathing had become heavier. 

 

Jeonghan bit his lip. “ He’s just a boy.” It was true. “ But I don’t like seeing kids suffer, and apparently you couldn’t fix him. What if someone else gets the same thing? Are you just going to push that person off to another town? Are they no longer your problem?”

The priest narrowed his eyes. “ The problem of the town and its people are not yours. You are here as a guest, and I advise you to not make assumptions about things you do not understand.”

“Do not understand? Do. Not. Understand?” Jeonghan scoffed. “ I understand plenty. What I don’t know is what I’m asking for. Now teach me now or,”

“Or what?” The priest asked, his hands folding in front of him. “Please tell me exactly what you are going to do in the house of God.”

Jeonghan jumped off his seat and marched to the edge of the desk. Almost as if it was instinct, Joshua had jumped up to follow: He moved forward, placing a hand on the desk in front of Jeonghan, hoping to stop the older boy. However as Joshua’s hand pressed down he suddenly felt his whole body erupt in flames. He let out a pitiful scream as he retracted his arm and crumbled to the ground. In terror the priests hopped out of his seat, holding his cross out. Joshua stared at his hand in horror as he sat on the ground, tears prickling in the corner of his eyes

“Joshua!” Seungcheol exclaimed diving towards the fallen the boy. Jeonghan stared in shock, but as the bubbles of angers washed out, he felt the emotion he hated the most; desperation. 

“Cheolie.” Jeonghan mumbled. The eldest looked up at the boy. “ Take Joshua outside to get some water, and relaxation.”

“What?” Seungcheol’s voice was filled with confusion, but he still gently gripped Joshua’s upper arms, pulling him into a standing position.

“No!” Joshua exclaimed, shocking everyone in the room. Jeonghan’s eyes fluttered, as if it would reset the situation. 

“No?” Jeonghan repeated. Joshua pushed Seungcheol’s hands away. 

“Yeah, no! There is something you aren’t telling me and I,” Joshua swayed. Seungcheol already had an arm hovering at the boy’s side just in case. “ I, I need to know.”

Jeonghan’s eyes softened. He reached a hand out, cupping the scared face. “ Joshua.” His voice was just above a whisper.

“Don’t ‘Joshua’ me.” The boy retorted. His voice although wavering, and breathy was still strong. “ What do you know that you aren’t telling me?” He curled a hand around the other, still burning and yet there was no burn mark. “ Why won’t you tell me?”

“ Lets, lets go outside. I’ll tell you outside.” Seungcheol whispered, pressing a hand to the boy’s lower back. The youngest shot a glare at the eldest, causing him to suck in a breath. 

Maybe once a year one of the two would receive that look, but it was over something they definitely deserved. Perhaps, Seungcheol thought, they did deserve this.

“ So you did know? I was guessing, I mean.” Joshua breath was shaky. “ I mean, I was hoping you weren’t lying to me too.”

Seungcheol opened his mouth, “ Neither of us were lying to you.”

“Lies of omission are still lies Seungcheol.” Joshua hissed out. “ Not telling me something is fine. really it is, but not telling me something that deals with me?” The youngest let out a soulless laugh. It sounded scratchier than normal. “That’s, that’s horrible.”  
“ Joshua.” Seungcheol gulped. “I’m sorry. But please, lets just go outside, we can chat there.” His voice was soft, nurturing. 

As the conversation unfolded, Jeonghan felt his heart hammering at this chest. Getting into pity fights with Joshua was one thing. The previous day’s fight was another thing. This, the exhaustion and confused betrayal in Joshua’s eyes is something different. 

Jeonghan thought it was the right thing; He thought he would tell him when he had everything figured out. He thought he could wait, and that Joshua would be too distracted to even notice. 

Jeonghan felt his heart twist; It wasn’t guilt, it was a punishment. 

He keeps hurting Joshua. 

Jeonghan internally cursed, as he watched Joshua stumble to the door. He never wants to hurt Joshua. “I’m sorry too.” Jeonghan weakly called out.

Joshua glanced back, his bangs falling tiredly in front of his eyes. There were so many words being spoken through the gaze, but Jeonghan struggled to understand any of it. 

When did he become so distant from Joshua, Jeonghan asked himself.

With a defeated sigh, Joshua turned back around and out the door. 

The clicking of the door shook Jeonghan out of his thoughts. It was just the priest and Jeonghan then. Slightly embarrassed, Jeonghan backpedaled into one of the seats. His arms crossed. 

“Lets continue.” Jeonghan ordered, hoping his voice held his normal power. He needed to regain the control in this conversation.

“ Your boyfriend has been possessed.” The priest stated instead. 

Jeonghan stared blankly ahead, his fingers curling into his jeans. “ Not important. Lets continue to talk about possession, about fixing it. I need to get the ghost out so I can kill the ghost right?” He responded.

“ It is important.” There was a pause as the priest sat himself in his chair once again, letting go of the cross. “ You need to plan an exorcism for him right away. I have the proper papers here actually, I hope-,”

Jeonghan’s head snapped up, narrowing at the man. “ No way in hell are you exorcising my boyfriend.”

Memories of Joshua spilling out his childhood stories seeped into his mind. It took all he had for Jeonghan not to take a pen from the desk and stab it into the priest’s arm.

The priest sighed, but pulled the papers out anyway. “ You will want to before its too late.”

“What if he isn’t possessed?” Jeonghan asked, ignoring the papers. 

“ What would the alternative be?” The priest asked. “Let me recite to you what I have observed with what you know. The child who came here had scratches across his arms, he was unable to stay still and the church was hazardous for him. I see the same things happening to your boyfriend. I saw it the day he walked in.”

The younger boy in the room narrowed his eyes. “ And you didn’t say anything that day?”

“ I was waiting for one of you to bring it up. It is impolite to assume someone’s loved one has been possessed on the first meeting, wouldn’t you say so?”

Jeonghan scoffed. “ It doesn’t matter. He wasn’t and isn’t possessed.”

“ And how are you so sure?”

“He’s just not… I have this feeling, I know he isn’t.” Jeonghan struggled. He truly didn’t understand why he was so adamant against his boyfriend being possessed; Was it really a feeling or was it he pushing away the inevitable?

Suddenly a knowing smirk appeared on the priest’s face. Jeonghan decided that expression should never appear on a servant to a God. 

“ What?” Jeonghan asked, pushing his back into the chair farther. “ What’s with that face?”

“ There is so much you three don’t know. How do you call yourselves paranormal investigators?” The priest laughed. Jeonghan’s face flushed. “ This is why no one should stray from the traditional method.”

Jeonghan scrunched up his nose at the words: He was ready to fight it, reiterate everything Joshua had plugged into their brains the past few years. However, he decided now was not the time. He needed answers.

He needed to help Joshua. “Stop fucking- fricken, stop fricken talking around the problem. What do you know?” 

“ Have you ever thought of yourself as special Jeonghan?” The priest asked. Jeonghan’s eyebrows furrowed.

“ What the fuck? No. Why would I?” 

The priest nodded. “ Do you ever have a sense for things, something you can’t explain?”

“I’m not playing a stupid question game, Mr. Priest.” Jeonghan hissed out. 

Chuckling, the priest stood up and began to wander throughout his office. His fingers grazed the bible as he did so. “ Last time we spoke I told you how Angels and Demons can occasionally choose a person, like choosing a predecessor.”

“ You never said the word predecessor.”

“No, I guess I didn’t.” The priest mused. “ But it’s not important. What is important is that in this case, an Angel will find someone they deem worthy. This person is someone who shows a willingness to protect, to do what is right. A person chosen by an Angel works on morals rather than law, for laws are man made.” The priest began. Jeonghan felt his shoulders relax as if he was listening to a story.

“ The people chosen, as I’ve stated, are enhanced in many ways. They get a sixth sense of sorts. It is how Angels would know how to save someone when they need to, its a tingle in the spine, an enhanced gut. ”

Jeonghan rolled his eyes. “Pretty sure those are just crazy instincts.”

The priest smiled softly. “ They are Angel instincts. Not everyone has them, and you my child, have them.”

Suddenly uncomfortable, Jeonghan's shoulders tensed once more. “ That sounds like a lot of bullshit.”

“ People chosen by an Angel also have the ability to relax evil spirits. That is why I think your boyfriend is relatively put together for someone possessed-,”

“Not possessed.”

“ Fine, not possessed. That brings me to my second comment, if he is not possessed, he may have been chosen much like you.”

“‘Shua is part Angel?” Jeonghan asked, a tiny smile appearing on his face. “That fits him so well."

The Priest shook his head sadly. “ No, quite the opposite. Unlike you, he was chosen by a demon.”

“ But Joshua doesn't have a bad bone in his body? What would attract a demon to choose Joshua?”

“ First off, a demon doesn't necessarily choose someone based off their morals. In fact, like when a demon chooses to possess someone, they choose someone they want to ruin. A possession though is forceful, painful and constant. Once the possession takes place, the demon will stay in the body causing havoc and death as often as it can. The process of choosing is slow. A demon would watch, occasionally terrorize their prey. It starts off with a possession, a feel for the power, the sins the victim has stored inside them before choosing them. It will control from a distance, like a puppet, but the goal is to make the chosen give into its sins, or to break all possible morals the person has.”

Jeonghan mumbled. " I don't understand.”

The priest sighed; “ A possession is the Demon completing a job, destroying what it can, terrorizing what it can with a host body. A choosing is playing with someone else’s soul until it will never be able to reach heaven again: This is due to the fact that any action done when under a curse from a demon, or being chosen by a demon, is only seen as an act of their own accord by angels.” 

Nodding numbly, Jeonghan let his mind process the information in silence. The Priest, who had made his way around the room and was back at his chair, watched him. After a moment of silence, Jeonghan spoke.

“ So how I can stop it?” Jeonghan asked, a fiery gaze being focused on the priest. 

The priest shook his head. “ An exorcism?”

“Anything but that.” Jeonghan growled out. 

Sighing, the priest finally sat back in his seat. “ Please, an exorcism may be his best bet. If the demon is near him when we do it we can get rid of it, but-,”

“But?”

“You wouldn’t be able to be there.”

“WHAT?!” Jeonghan exclaimed, standing up from his chair. 

“ You have to understand, you being chosen by an Angel is an aura that would scare away a demon, and-,”

“ There was a 1% chance I was even going to accept that, and now, now there is none. You can not expect me to not be by my boyfriend’s side when you would force him to go through something so, so, painful!” Jeonghan screamed. 

“Look, I know it sounds bad but I swear an exorcism would-,”

Suddenly there was a scream. Jeonghan’s ears flickered, a tingle running down his spine and to his toes.  
“ GET OFF OF HIM!” It didn’t take long for Jeonghan to recognize that voice; It was Seungcheol’s after all. 

With lightning speed, Jeonghan had sprinted out of the office. The papers about the exorcism fluttering around to the floor. 

There was a softer scream, but a scream none the less. Jeonghan with determination, headed towards it. The voice echoing in his head. Pleading cries began to get louder as Jeonghan found himself nearing the center of the Church.  
As he slid into the room, his eyes practically ripped out of their sockets.

In front of him were two large men holding Seungcheol back, an arm unforgivingly pressing against his throat to keep him from going forward. A few feet away from that was Joshua being manhandled onto a table, crosses pushed against his open skin, and water being sprayed at his face. Jeonghan felt his chest huffing painfully fast as he spotted tears sprinkling down Joshua’s cheeks. 

“ Get the fuck away from him right this fuckin instant.” Jeonghan growled out as he walked forward. Every step should have felt heavy. They should have felt like they were walking into a lions den, but with his eyes focused on Joshua, Jeonghan felt like he was floating above it all. In the corner of his eye, Jeonghan could see Seungcheol’s shoulders struggling to shove the other two off. 

But Joshua was the priority here.

Seungcheol would understand.

“ I will literally give you two seconds to get your dirty, hell-creating hands off of my boyfriends before I burn you all like the devil himself.” 

The hands flinched slightly, but none moved away. Jeonghan glowered. 

“One.” Jeonghan threatened as he stepped onto the alter. 

Seungcheol stretched his neck out, and bit down on an arm, only to be slammed against the wall. Jeonghan’s head snapped over to him. “ Two.” 

When nothing changed, Jeonghan scoffed. He took a large step forward before twisting on his heel and lifting a leg up. In a second he stretched it out and dangerously fast slammed his foot into the side of one of the men at Joshua’s side. The man stumbled away gripping his side. 

“Jeonghan!” Seungcheol exclaimed. The called out boy spun around, only to feel himself being head butted to the ground. 

With a sudden burst of strength, Seungcheol separated from the men at his side, shoving a face into both of their skulls. Furiously, the eldest stomped across the grounds, grabbing the man on top of Jeonghan by the back of the robe. 

“ God would hate this.” Seungcheol hissed out to the robed man. “ Attacking the defenseless.” 

He tossed him into the podium. 

And then it was chaos. 

Innocent bystanders began to leave as there was a mesh of colors beneath the stained glass Jesus. Fists flew, legs kicked, and profanity spewed. It only ended as The Priest walked into the room, his hand holding a bible tightly to his chest. 

“ENOUGH!” He exclaimed. 

The room froze. Joshua was hidden under the table, which had Jeonghan mid punch into a man he shoved onto the top of it. Seungcheol stood, legs wide and bent, half way through flipping someone over his shoulder. Three of the other men laid exhausted on the floor, while one was curled into the corner watching the scene unfold. 

At the silence, Jeonghan released his hold, while Seungcheol casually dropped the man from his back. 

“ Get. Out.” The Priest hissed. 

“What about the exorcism Mr. Priest?” Jeonghan teased, but there was no joy in his voice.

“ Out.” 

Joshua crawled out from his space, hooking a hand into the hoops in Jeonghan’s jeans. “ I need to leave.” He whispered, his voice unsteady. Jeonghan nodded, wrapping an arm around the younger’s waist. 

“Okay.” He whispered back, nodding over to Seungcheol. The eldest dusted off his jeans before jogging to catch up with them. 

Right before they left, Jeonghan reached over to a bench, shoving a bible to the floor. “Fuck your bible.”

“Don’t do that.” Joshua scolded quietly.

“Sorry.” 

Seungcheol chuckled.

 

Hours later, they were back in their RV, takeout spread across the bed. Seungcheol had explained the commotion started when he was explaining the situation to Joshua and a priest had overheard. Joshua carefully described everything he understood to the stranger, even though Seungcheol occasionally tried to avoid certain parts. It only took a couple of minutes, but when the information settled in the man’s head he loudly called for help, and it all went downhill from there.

But back on their bed, Joshua didn’t care anymore. The crosses burned into his skin would fade, he told himself. The scars on Jeonghan’s arms would fade, he told him. The bruise on Seungcheol’s neck would vanish with time, he reminded everyone. 

“Are we still going to the house tonight?” Joshua asked innocently. 

Jeonghan sighed. “ We still haven’t fixed whats going on with you though…”

“So?” Joshua asked. “ We completed the job at the hotel with me like this…. right? This started happening before that right?”

Seungcheol chuckled and nodded. As he responded the eldest leaned over to peck him on the crown of the head. “ Yes it happened before.”

“ So why does it matter?”

“ I just,” Jeonghan sighed. “ We accepted to look into this house for the kid right? Did anyone even talk to the parents about this?”

The two boys shrugged. 

“Wait, are we even getting paid for this?” Jeonghan asked. 

Seungcheol hesitantly raised his hand; “ Not technically. The family didn’t ask for us to look into this, but the people in the town were very adamant about us getting information on this and helping them out… they offered us free baskets of fruit if we go back with the solution.”

Jeonghan stared at the two dumbfounded. 

“ This is stupid. Lets get a new job, something with I dunno, more information.”

“ All we have to do is find any left over demons there and get rid of them. Then we go back and talk to the family Hannie. We will be helping so many people if we do that.” Joshua pouted. 

“But we need money guys.” Jeonghan responded.

“Next Job.” Seungcheol promised, holding out his pinkie. “I promise, next job.”

Reluctantly, Jeonghan curled his pinkie around the other’s. “ Fine. Next job.”

 

Although Jeonghan had wished they spent the rest of the day in their beds, once they had finished lunch, the day was all about preparation. The hours were spent at the lunch table, makeshift blue prints of the house drawn out, ghost-weapons spread across the wood. Joshua sat in the corner seat, beside the window, legs curled and a laptop close to his chest. Seungcheol had an arm lazily draped behind the youngest, nodding his head as the boy explained his work. Jeonghan was carefully packing everything away, keeping an ear out to listen to Joshua’s words. 

Jeonghan could feel his shoulders weighing down more and more as the time ticked by. He wished they never took this job. 

He wished he had asked more questions prior.

Before he knew it, the clock had struck nine. 

Instead of walking there, Seungcheol drove them down the roads. Joshua sat in the passenger seat chatting away, explaining with excitement how their plan is going to go down without a hitch. Jeonghan watched them for a few quiet moments before gazing out the window from their bed. Houses passed by in a blur. Trees blended into one. The full moon followed parallel to their car. Jeonghan stared at it as a shiver run down his arm. 

And then they arrived. As Jeonghan slid off the bed he wondered why his feet seemed to cement themselves into the floor. Every step was a battle. 

He concluded he was just exhausted from the day’s events. 

He couldn’t keep pushing off going to this house though. 

Jeonghan followed through the motions with the bubbly other two, as they unpacked their RV. The door unlocked from their last visit, it was easy to carry everything inside. Dropping a suitcase filled with electronics on the floor, Jeonghan eyed the staircase ahead of him. His stomach twisted. Jeonghan painfully gripped his abdomen. 

Why was it twisting, Jeonghan wondered.

Suddenly a pair of slender arms wrapped around his waist. A head nuzzled between his shoulder blades. A soft hum of content made its way to his ears.

“Hannie.” The voice whispered. Jeonghan couldn’t help the smile that found its way onto his face. 

“Yes, Joshie?” Jeonghan asked. 

The arms around him tightened. “ I know you don’t want to be here but,”

Jeonghan twisted around in the arms. Facing the younger, Jeonghan let his arms lazily rest on the other’s shoulders. “ I don’t. Not in the slightest.”

There was a twitch of a frown on the younger’s lips, but Jeonghan continued; “ But like you said. We accepted this job, we must finish it.”

Joshua nodded as if he was only now taking in those words for the first time. 

“ However.” Jeonghan announced. “ We are talking about everything afterwards… I shouldn’t have lied to you Joshua.”

Joshua shrugged, face turned to nuzzle into the arm beside him. “ It’s fine, I overreacted.”

“ It’s not fine ‘shua.” Jeonghan stood his ground. Joshua only hid his face into the arm more, but Jeonghan could only sigh. “ You know I never want to hurt you right?”

There was a noise similar to whine emitted from Joshua’s lips.  
“ Joshua?” Jeonghan whispered. 

“Mhm?”

“You know that right?”

“Yes.” 

Jeonghan smiled, pressing his lips against the other’s forehead. “ Good.”

“Am I interrupting something?” Seungcheol asked as he walked in, camera equipment in hand. Jeonghan gave the eldest a toothy grin, and squeezed the boy in his arms one more time before separating from him. 

“ Depends, do you want to join?” Jeonghan winked. 

Seungcheol chuckled softly. “ Maybe later. Right now though I need Joshua to fix these up in the designated areas.” The eldest boy held the cameras up, wires and bags dangling. 

“ This is interrupting then.” Jeonghan grumbles as Joshua turns around to grab the cameras. 

“Suck it up, Han.” Seungcheol laughed. At the choice of words Jeonghan raised an eyebrow, causing Seungcheol’s face to flush. “Not what I meant, and you know it.”

“Whatever.” Jeonghan pouted as he walked passed the man. “Is there anything else left in the car?” 

Seungcheol who had knelt to start opening the suitcases and fix up some of the sensors, shrugged. “ Only the snacks for the long night. They’re in grocery bags.. oh and the sleeping bags if you can carry all that.” 

“Okay.”

As Jeonghan walked out, Seungcheol fiddled with some of the equipment. He was testing the heat scanner when a pitiful “Seungcheol” was whined from the top of the stairs. Seungcheol only hummed back, however when he didn’t hear anything back, the boy looked up.

Joshua stood at the top of the steps, leaning tiredly against the railing. 

“Is everything okay?” Seungcheol asked, putting down the heat scanner. There was a soft cry leaving Joshua’s lips. 

Slowly, the eldest male stood up and made his way to the stairs. “ Joshua?” 

The called boy looked up. His right eye shimmering with tears while the other seemed dead to the world. 

The words “I’m scared.” left his lips softly, pleadingly. Before Seungcheol could respond, Joshua opened his mouth again:

“Be scared.” Was a scratchy version of the boy’s voice. Joshua’s hands shook on the banister, fingers struggling to keep a grip on the wood. 

“Joshua it’s okay, I’m here. Come down the stairs.” 

The boy feverishly shook his head. His lips trembled as he spoke “ Yesterday…”

“Yesterday?” Seungcheol asked as he carefully took a step up.

The boy nodded. The eldest watched as the youngest took a step down, but his hands desperately hooked around the banister. 

“ Did this happen yesterday?”

Joshua nodded quickly, his fingers clawing at the wood. Suddenly the boy’s eyes widened, and he clutched his head. Seungcheol nervously took another step up. 

“ Sweetie,” Seungcheol tried, as he reached a hand out for the boy. “ Love, come down stairs with me. We don’t have to stay here.”

A shiver went down Seungcheol’s spine as a weird laugh left Joshua’s lips. 

“No. No. No. NO! NO!” Joshua started screaming, but at one point the sound stopped. Joshua continued to scream into the abyss, lips moving, but the sound was gone. Seungcheol stared into the terrified eyes of the youngest. The boy was stumbling as he made his way down the steps in a drunken state. 

Seungcheol reached both of his arms out, hoping for the other male to fall into him. 

But that’s not what happened.

Seungcheol couldn’t remember how it happened exactly, why he couldn’t keep his step, but when Joshua was just in arms reach, he felt himself falling. A bloodcurdling smirk was apparent on Joshua’s face, all expression from his eyes gone. As he tumbled backwards, Seungcheol reached for the railing, slowing his fall slightly. 

His foot reached the bottom step, and he couldn’t help but to breathe in a sigh of a relief. The peace was short lived Joshua hovered near him. 

“Joshua.” Seungcheol whispered, reaching an arm out once more. Before his fingers could even scratch the surface of his beloved in front of him, his chest was firmly pushed. Seungcheol’s arms flailed as his back made contact with the floor. A hiss left his mouth, eyes squeezing shut at the impact. 

When his eyes fluttered open, Joshua was standing over him, feet planted on either side of his waist. The demonic grin was twitching, fighting every muscle to frown. The younger’s fingers scratching at the arms as his head jerking from side to side. Seungcheol painfully sat up, and reached out once more. His own fingers curling around the bleeding arms, gently pulling them apart. 

“ Hey.” Seungcheol tried again. “ Pay attention to my voice, it’s okay. You’re okay.”

“It’s okay. You’re okay.” The demonic growl from Joshua’s mouth repeated. Seungcheol swallowed his fear as he tugged on the arms. 

“ Come into my arms love.” Seungcheol pleaded as a tear slipped out of Joshua’s eyes. “ You’re okay, it’s okay.” 

“You’re okay, it’s okay.” The voice mocked. 

Joshua’s legs tumbled to the ground, his body straddling Seungcheol’s. The eldest could feel the arms of the younger flinching, struggling between fighting and surrendering. Letting go of one of the arms, Seungcheol curled a hand into the hair of the younger boy. Carefully, he combed through a few brown strands. 

“Isn’t this better?” Seungcheol asked. His voice was calm, but the eldest felt his heart beating a mile a minute. “ You’re okay.”

The boy on his lap seemed to ease up, all his weight tumbling into Seungcheol’s chest. With a sigh of relief, Seungcheol wrapped his arms around the boy’s shoulders, rubbing them softly. “ See? You’re okay, it is all okay.”

But then Seungcheol felt Joshua’s hand snake up from the floor, across his chest and rest at his collar bones. Another hand rested itself against his chest. The cursed laugh causing heated air to tickle his neck. “I’m Okay.” The demonic voice practically sang. “ I’m okay. I’m okay.”

And suddenly sharp nails punctured against his chest, dragging as pressure was forced against his throat. In the same moment Seungcheol felt himself shoved back onto his back. In shock, Seungcheol’s arms fell to his side. 

Above him sat his boyfriend: Eyes stained red in the corners, dilated beyond compare. Above him sat his boyfriend, a smile rivaling the joker’s twitching as if it was exhausting just to keep it there. Above him, sat his beloved who held his throat with fury. Seungcheol wanted to fight back, punch the living daylights out of the demon, but above him was not the demon.

Above him was his boyfriend, and Seungcheol if he kept the gaze long enough could see the fight still in the boy’s eyes. 

The hand once laying at his chest slid up before circling around his neck. The eldest spotted the boy’s lips parting to speak, there was a moment of silence. Nothing said, nothing squeezed. It was as if time stopped.

“ You’re not okay.” Were the words by the voice breaking the moment of peace. 

There was a shake of Joshua’s head; denying the statement. Seungcheol couldn’t help the fond smile appearing. Joshua was still fighting it, his boyfriend was still there. 

A tear left the boy’s eyes once more, and Seungcheol carefully placed the palm of his hand against the other’s cheek. His other hand curled around the wrist at his throat. His thumb brushed the stray tear softly. 

“It’s okay.” Seungcheol whispered with the last of the breath he had, the most forgiving smile on his face. 

And in the next moment, Joshua was off of him. 

Seungcheol watched it happen in slow motion. 

Jeonghan was back. His fingers had curled around the younger’s wrists dangerously tight and hauled the boy off of him. Joshua was screaming nonsense as his feet kicked out desperately. A foot missed his cheek by a centimeter, but that didn’t deter Jeonghan. Instead, Jeonghan flung their boyfriend against the nearest wall, trapping him there. Seungcheol’s youngest boyfriend let out a scream of pain, causing him to almost instinctually reach out. Jeonghan unconsciously slapped it away before pressing an arm painfully against Joshua’s chest. 

“Jeonghan!” Seungcheol exclaimed. The words fell on deaf ears. “Jeonghan stop!”

Tears were pouring out of the younger’s eyes. Seungcheol watched unsure. 

Who was he supposed to help? Who should he stop? 

His fingers curled around the renewed bruise on his neck. Seungcheol knew he wouldn’t have stopped the younger. He was prepared to die at his fingertips. 

Jeonghan was prepared to protect at any cost. 

And with the sound of skin hitting skin, Seungcheol felt his world crumble. In front of him was Jeonghan hitting Joshua who was weakly clawing at the older boy. “ NO!” Seungcheol screamed, struggling to stand. His feet stumbling slightly. “ Please god no. Jeonghan you are going to regret it."

But none of the words made it to the boy’s ears. Jeonghan’s hand moved back once more, swinging at a fast speed only to force itself against Joshua's cheek once more. Seungcheol watched as the youngest male’s eyes soften, and return to his usual state. Seungcheol thought it was over, it should have been over.

He was proven wrong when Jeonghan reached back once more, and followed through. The soft gasp leaving Joshua’s lips twisted at his heart. The youngest crumbled to the floor. Jeonghan took an uneasy step back. There was a deafening silence echoing through the hall. Seungcheol stumbled over. A foot away from him was Joshua pressed against the wall, cupping his reddening cheek with horror in his eyes. 

Seungcheol would think back to how lost the boy looked that day.

The eldest glanced over at Jeonghan. His eyes were wide, lips trembling as he stared down at Joshua. His hands were shaking. 

“Fuck.” Jeonghan had muttered, taking a tentative step forward. “ Fuck, no please.” 

Seungcheol watched as the second eldest began to bend his knees, to meet Joshua at eye level. He watched as the man froze half way, before stumbling back a few steps. 

“Oh my god.” Jeonghan whispered. “I’m so sorry. Oh my god.” 

Seungcheol placed a kind hand on the other’s shoulder. Below his hand he could feel the rapid breathing, the quick raising of the shoulders. “ Breathe in slowly Hannie. It’s okay.” 

“Oh my god.” The boy could only mutter, his breathing quickening. 

“Hannie you need to breathe.” Seungcheol tried again, taking a step closer to the boy. As if magnetized, Jeonghan stumbled away quickly. His arms crossing in front of him, hugging himself tight. 

“ I’m so sorry, oh my god.” Jeonghan mumbled, staring no where in particular. 

Then a soft voice entered the mix; “ Hannie?” Joshua asked. Jeonghan’s head whipped around to focus on the boy still curled up on the floor. 

“ I’m so sorry.” Jeonghan said almost automatically. “ I’m so, so. so, so sorry.” 

“Hannie,” Joshua confessed. “ it’s okay… I swear, whatever happened it is okay. Breathe Hannie.” 

Seungcheol watched the younger sadly; he didn’t remember. 

He never remembered.

“It’s not okay.” Jeonghan cried out, tears falling down his cheeks. “ It’s not okay, you don’t understand Joshua. You don’t… please just… Seungcheol please.” 

Seungcheol stared weakly. He didn’t know what Jeonghan was pleading for. 

“Seungcheol please!” Jeonghan exclaimed, stepping even farther away. 

“Please what Hannie? What do you want me to do?” Seungcheol asked, trying to step near him. 

“ I don’t know, I don’t know.” The boy cried. “ Just please. I’m sorry, I’m really sorry. So please.” 

The second eldest fell to the ground, his hands covering his face, his hair half way out of it’s ponytail. Joshua quietly crawled to him, but when he reached out, Jeonghan squirmed away.

“Hannie.” Joshua’s voice was pitiful. 

“ You need to leave Joshua.” Jeonghan announced. “ He can’t be near me Seungcheol.”

Seungcheol hesitantly placed a hand on Joshua’s shoulder. “ Joshua lets go to the RV.” 

“No!” Joshua refused, glaring up at Seungcheol.

“Joshua.” Seungcheol tried, his voice tired.

Joshua shook his head looking back at Jeonghan. “Hannie I love you. I love you Hannie.”

Jeonghan nodded his head. “ I love you too.”

“ I love you!” Joshua said again, trying to crawl closer. Seungcheol regretfully grabbed onto the younger’s arms and pulled him back. 

“Go to the RV Joshua.” Seungcheol ordered.

“But he needs to know!” Joshua yelled. “ I love you Hannie! It’s okay! He needs to know I love him!”

With a glance at the second eldest shivering on the floor, Seungcheol sighed. “ He knows, love. Now go to the RV.”

There was a minute of silence, Joshua’s head hanging low before he stumbled into a standing position. Joshua made the first steps towards the front door. Seungcheol watched for a few moments before turning to Jeonghan.

“ Do you want me to come back and get you, or will you meet us at the RV?”

“Back at the RV.”

When Seungcheol was about to follow Joshua out of the door, Jeonghan curled his fingers around the boy’s jacket. Seungcheol tiredly glanced back at the boy.

“ Cheollie.” Jeonghan spoke. His voice was small, child like. 

“Yeah?”

“ I never wanted to hurt him.”

“He knows, Angel.” Seungcheol responded, kissing the boy’s head. Jeonghan let his fingers fall at the affection, watching the shoes then move farther away, from under his loose hair.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HELLO! It's been two weeks... which is better than a month? Yeah? Yeah? No? We will see if I can get back to weekly updates...
> 
> ANYWAY! This chapter is finally finished! 24 pages, over 8000 words, all for you guys, meaning its officially the longest chapter in the story. I'm so proud of myself and my readers ( For even making it this far). 
> 
> What do you guys think? A lot happened in this chapter... The church! Explanation of the Choosing, A fight, the haunted house!   
> The haunted house part is what I was talking about from the previous author's note... hope you guys were excited for this as I was! Is Joshua okay? Is Jeonghan okay? Is Seungcheol okay? Will they be okay?
> 
> Also a new story idea is in the works as I continue to work on this one. (That story will not be posted until we reach the final two chapters of this story). While I will keep you updated, I would love to hear if you would want to read another Jihancheol relationship based story, or another couple? Or perhaps have multiple couples as the focus of the new story? (While nothing is set in stone, I am curious as to what my readers would enjoy) 
> 
> LASTLY: This is a lot of thank yous...you can pass it if you want... Thank you so much for all of your support from the last chapter. I am so glad to hear you will continue to be readers even after a break such as that one. Even if it does release some stress of due dates, I still hope to keep updating with a healthy and constant schedule for you all. HONESTLY: elysihan, Avena95, and Suli, you three have been such amazing commenters and supporters of this story, and me. Thank you so much! Your comments made my day! Please take care of yourselves.   
>  Thank you to everyone who has left kudos! 73 kudos guys! That's more than I could ask for. Over1000 hits! It's seriously amazing to see!   
>  Thank you to all my quiet readers! Your enjoyment and health is also important! I hope to see you in my comments one day, but if not I completely understand! I have done the same and hope you know that you are very important too!
> 
> Once again, thank you for the encouragement! It seems there are only five more chapters left... Lets make them amazing!
> 
> Sincerely, 
> 
> V.AY


	13. Chapter 12: Are You Scared

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “ Nothing has popped up on the scanners in an hour.” Jeonghan whined, his hands fiddling with the ends of Joshua’s hair. 
> 
> Joshua chuckled softly, but there was little joy in the sound. “ Maybe they were all scared off by me.” 
> 
> At the words, Seungcheol stared sadly at the boy spread across the floor. The ever tensed shoulders, the messy hair, and twitching hands did not go unnoticed by the oldest. Biting the inside of his cheek, Seungcheol chose to not dive into the emotional conversation at that moment, instead he said;
> 
> “ Yeah, you’re pretty intimidating.” 
> 
> Joshua’s head twisted quickly, playfully glaring up at Seungcheol. He held up a hand, curling it as if it had claws. “ Hiss.”
> 
> Seungcheol pushed himself up and over Jeonghan slightly, pressing his lips softly against the younger boy’s knuckles. “ Terrifying.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I AM SO SORRY! It has been over a month which is honestly not really acceptable. I hope you thoroughly enjoy the longest chapter in the story.

Jeonghan’s reaction was natural, unavoidable, necessary. The brute force was crucial, the inflicted pain was vital, if he was going to save anyone that day. That’s what he repeated to himself, practically a mantra when his body went on auto pilot and targeted in on Joshua. But these lines which he repeated in his head endlessly as he regained control of his body, and backed away from Joshua who was caressing his reddened cheek, were nothing but pathetic excuses.

He never wanted to hurt anyone, especially not Joshua. 

But someone was going to die if he didn’t. 

The memories torture him in snapshots: Seungcheol who was standing peacefully in the aged house’s living room when he left, was on his back when he walked back in. Joshua, originally upstairs planting cameras and sound equipment, was straddling the older boy. The latter had his soft, delicate hands curled around Seungcheol’s neck almost desperately. Pure anger flashed in the boy’s eyes, a single tear escaped and outlined the elegant bone structure. Seungcheol, always careful, had one hand gently wrapped around one of the boy’s wrists, a thumb grazing the skin lovingly. The other hand reaching up to caress the murderous boy’s cheek, wiping away the stray tear. A forgiving smile displayed clearly, even when he weakly gasped for air. 

Jeonghan did not think, only acted. When he walked in, his eyes focusing on his two favorite people on the living room floor, one close to death, Jeonghan became pure instinct. The man dropped his bags. His feet stumbled before sprinting towards the two. In seconds Jeonghan tightly gripped Joshua’s wrists and pulled him off of Seungcheol. Joshua squirmed in the hold, screaming nonsense and kicking his feet, barely missing Seungcheol. Quickly, Jeonghan with practically no mercy launched the boy at a wall. Joshua’s small cry of pain had Seungcheol reaching out for Jeonghan. 

Jeonghan was not having it. 

He pushed an arm against the boy’s chest, gazing into the eyes of his boyfriend. They hadn’t changed. And so when the boy reached out to claw Jeonghan, the older boy did the only thing he thought wise. He swung his hand back, and forced it against the younger boy’s cheek. He did it once, twice, thrice. 

And then the boy in front of him crumpled. He was back.

And Jeonghan’s mind cleared from the fog. So was he.

And he wished he wasn’t. 

As Jeonghan watched his two most favorite people walk away, the second eldest’s stomach twisted. Exhausted, he crawled over to a nearby wall, clumsily falling against it. He curled a knee up to his chest as he gazed at the stairs. Slowly, he moved his attention to his arms. His eyes grazed over every inch; His fingers shook, hairs stood on end, arms tensed. Like he was scared to see what he would see, the boy twisted his hand to see the redding palm. He curled his fingers in carefully, as if it would comfort the stinging pain.

The pain was nothing, Jeonghan thought. In this boy’s mind, no pain was equal to what he did to Joshua. 

He knew though, he knew he had to stop him. He knew Seungcheol wouldn’t have. Seungcheol and him were nothing a like. While Seungcheol wouldn’t even think of hurting a fly, Jeonghan was prepared to kill a kingdom if it meant it would protect his loved ones.

Jeonghan just never thought the kingdom would be his own. 

Jeonghan wondered, how far he would go to save his kingdom. Jeonghan wondered, what would Seungcheol have done, had Joshua had his delicate fingers wrapped around Jeonghan’s neck instead of his. However, Jeonghan knew that Seungcheol wouldn’t even have had the chance to see them in that position.

Seungcheol’s words from the bar echoed in his head;

 

“What would you have done, if you were me?” Jeonghan had asked

Seungcheol’s hand lifted before falling lifelessly to his lap. “ I don’t know,” He started. “ I wouldn’t be able to handle the screams. I can’t handle hearing either of you in pain really. I would’ve done anything to stop you or him from screaming, stop you from being in pain.”

“Anything?”

Seungcheol was waving down the bartender for the third glass as he spoke; “ Probably would have let him kill me.” 

 

Gripping his wrist tightly, Jeonghan thanked the heavens he walked in when he did. He had no doubt that the words Seungcheol once stated were seconds away from being his fate. The eldest’s boys personality, his ability to love, were qualities Jeonghan adored.

They were also what Jeonghan wished he could control. Joshua and Jeonghan used to whisper about it all the time; the charitable nature of their partner. They would joke about how he would make a perfect superhero, only ever aware of others and never himself. The two of them both knew though, the superhero complex that Seungcheol was cursed with, that they used as a basis to their jokes, was the most dangerous aspect of this boy. 

They knew Seungcheol could never sit still if he knew, or even thought he could help. There was once when Seungcheol turned the car around to help someone with their car troubles on the highway. Jeonghan and Joshua had become accustomed to holding Seungcheol’s hands on either side when they walk through the city, so the eldest wouldn’t give up their savings to strangers on the street. 

Seungcheol was the most rational about problems, habits, work. He was the one that kept them balanced most of the time, but Jeonghan knew he easily became irrational at the saddest face. Jeonghan worried a lot though, that there was more going on in the head of their eldest partner than he would let on. 

Jeonghan slammed his fist angrily against the floor boards. The sound echoed through the halls. He wished he could have been as accepting as Seungcheol had been, but he couldn’t. 

Tears slipped down the side of Jeonghan’s face. He wished he could have had the sense to stop after the second hit against the youngest’s cheek, but he didn’t.

A pitiful cry left Jeonghan’s lips. He wished he was smart enough to have thought of some other way to get Joshua back to his senses, but he wasn’t.

As these thoughts echoed throughout his mind, Jeonghan gave up on muting his cries. The long haired boy curled up into a ball, digging his head in-between his knees as he balled: Jeonghan wished so badly he hadn’t hit his boyfriend, but he did.

He thought he was different than his father, but apparently he wasn’t. 

 

As Joshua walked into their RV, the youngest boy felt all of his restraint beg to leave his body. He slammed the door. It locked. Joshua choked out a scream. Tears trailed down his reddening cheek. He stood in the walkway, fists curled at his sides. His body shook. With a sudden rush of adrenaline, Joshua reached for the pans on the sink, and flung them angrily to the side. 

The loud bang echoed in his ears, drowning out his thoughts.

But then the tattering of the pans stopped, and every memory hit him like a bullet. 

Joshua felt his fingers tingle. 

The boy grabbed the closest thing in his vicinity - a plate - and tossed it against the refrigerator. It broke like glass. Joshua watched as every piece fall to the ground, as if in slow motion. 

His fingers twitched. 

He twisted himself around, his hands curling into his hair. As he tugged on every strand, the pain distracted him; it distracted him of the boy he left in the house, on his knees, tears on his face. It distracted him from reminding him his boyfriend couldn’t be around him, didn’t want him around him. When the pain faded, he was reminded why he couldn't be there to hug his lover, to hug one of his best friends, to embrace his family.

With a cry Joshua dragged himself to the lunch table. In front of him laid his laptop, his books, his electronics. “ Why?” Joshua cried out, glaring at his equipment. His left hand shakily dragged over an external hard drive. He felt the ridges, the sockets, the tape with the name of it on the side. He knew it had all the information of everything they had worked on for the past month. 

Everything he researched, studied, learned. 

And yet, Joshua thought, it did not help him when he needed it. 

His hand twisted the box in his hand, lifting it up and detaching it from his laptop. Gazing at it, he felt his heart constrict. With a simple flick of the wrist, the box vanished out of site. Joshua closed his eyes as he heard it bounce against a wall. He hoped it cracked, but he didn’t turn around to see.

He knew it didn’t. Even with a demon inside of him, or a demon controlling him, persuading him; Even with a lover crying over him, crying over regret, suffering just a few yards away; Even with knowing it was all useless, and unhealthy, Joshua didn’t have the guts to injure his work.

He knew by the gentleness of his toss that it was only out of sight, and yet not out of mind. 

Joshua knew had it been Jeonghan, the item would have been smashed into pieces- probably with a hammer he made magically appear. The second eldest was always determined, and was able to keep his mind on track. IF something needed to be destroyed, it was destroyed. If something needed to be fixed, it would be fixed. If something was ever wrong, Jeonghan was there to make it right.

Sometimes his methods made Joshua uncomfortable, but if they did Jeonghan tried to change it. No matter what though, Jeonghan had the safety of them three as his top priority.

They all did really; They wanted to protect each other, and make sure each other was safe. Jeonghan though, was just better at it than the other two. 

Joshua knew Seungcheol was quick to save any soul in the vicinity. 

Joshua knew Jeonghan was ready to fight any soul in the vicinity 

Joshua knew he, himself, wanted to try everything in the vicinity. 

Joshua doesn’t think he is as selfless as the other two. He cares too much about his belongings, everything he worked for. It’s not that he wouldn’t give it up for Seungcheol or Jeonghan, but he knew how hard it would be for himself. 

Sometimes he tries to back himself up saying he deserves to keep what he worked hard for. He was abandoned by his family, his church, and gave up a college career, a normal life. He wants to believe that the hard work would show he is worth a family, the love of a church, a career and a normal life. 

But then he remembered how Seungcheol literally lost his family in front of him. He remembered how Jeonghan has physical reminders of his family hating him. And then he remembers that his problems are minuscule. 

And he wishes he could just give up his research for the other two for a normal life. The other two joined this relationship with nothing, and gave everything. Joshua joined with all of his hope stored in his laptop, and shared it with the two. 

But his research, his papers, his blogs are the only thing that helps him understand. It was his research that gave him a path to follow, a goal in life. It were his papers which helped him start a career, and meet his loved ones. It were his blogs that helped him process his thoughts, and navigate the world better. 

He would be so lost without it all. 

But he wouldn’t even know how to begin life again if he were to lose Seungcheol and Jeonghan. 

Joshua feels his arms twitching again, and a scratching in his throat. Joshua knew then, he couldn’t pretend his crazy urges were solely a flaw in his DNA: They were coming around more often than usual, he was loosing control more often than not. So, Joshua slid himself onto a bench at the lunch table, and opened up his laptop. 

He may fear a future without his boyfriends, and may be lost without his research.

But at that moment he had both, and he would do whatever it took to have it all.

 

Seungcheol let the door to the house shut behind him, carelessly. The piece of wood did nothing to mute Jeonghan’s cries on the other side. Instead of heading straight for the vehicle, Seungcheol perched himself on top of the front steps of the house. He stretched his arms out in front of him, relaxing them on his knees. In silence, he watched Joshua’s back vanish behind the RV. Only when he heard the RV’s door shut did he let out a long, overdue exhale. 

Seungcheol has done a lot of dumb stuff, although he won’t admit it. He didn’t always know what he was doing, he will sometimes admit that. But he always followed his heart, and that has rarely strayed him down the wrong path.Except, now. 

Now he was confused. His heart was strangely silent. 

His body jumped slightly as he heard a crash in the RV, and a soft bang echo in the house behind him. 

When everything seemed to calm down, Seungcheol fluttered his eyes shut. His head dangled down slightly, suddenly feeling like a hundred bricks were weighing down his neck. 

“ Everything is going to be okay.” Seungcheol mumbled. 

He didn’t know how true this statement was. 

Seungcheol, on many occasions would associate himself with the word dumb. Jeonghan would wrangle his neck if he ever admitted to it; He said it once and Jeonghan almost threw him out of their hotel room. The burst of anger was then followed by an hour long speech about how Seungcheol not receiving a high school degree, nor a college degree, and traveling the world instead of getting a business job did not equal being dumb. Joshua had told him that he believed Seungcheol was one of the smartest people he ever knew for the sole reason that Seungcheol had made it through his life how he had. 

“ Only someone smart would be successful at living a life in a way which defies how a government has structured society.” Joshua had said. The boy had also followed up with offering Seungcheol random tutoring sessions in any topic he wants. Seungcheol took one look at Joshua’s notes, and quickly, yet politely, declined the boy’s offer.

But even though the words comforted him, they acted more like a bandaid on a broken ankle. It was a cute sentiment with heart in the right place, but it didn’t change the fact that the ankle was broken. 

Seungcheol saw himself as dumb. He wasn’t naive, and he wasn’t a fool, he just wasn’t smart. He didn’t understand what was going on in the world half the time, and would find himself lost in conversations with his smart youngest boyfriend. Even when talking with Jeonghan, who often held conversations on his level, would also dive into conversation about things he had no clue about. He held little attention span for anything not introduced in a fun, loving, entertaining manner. 

He knew it wasn’t the right way to live, but it’s all he knew how to do at that point. 

He always just worked based on what his body and heart told him to do; If he needed food, he would work to get food. If he needed to sleep, he slept. If his heart cried at the sight of a stranger on the sidewalk, he would help the stranger. If he found himself to amazing and handsome boys willing to spend their lives with him, he was going to take care of them like no one else ever would.

But sometimes he wished he was smart, and knew how to trust his brain more often.

He wished he could give the two boys he loves, a life where they never had to check the shoe box for any extra change so they can eat a meal. He wished he was smart enough to know the exact words to stop either of the two from crying, or getting mad at the other.

Most of all, he wished he had worked on becoming smarter so he knew what to do at that exact moment.

He usually knew to give Joshua time, or what to say to comfort Jeonghan. But this was different. This wasn’t a fight over misdoings. This was anger against themselves, and Seungcheol could only think of himself to be too dumb to know how to fix this.

It’s easy to fight demons you can see, and easy to fight demons you can hear. It is impossible to fight demons when they are your loved ones. 

Seungcheol sighed as he combed his fingers through his hair. He could feel his eyes drooping as he sat there. Exhausted, Seungcheol lifted his head and looked up at the sky; the stars were hidden by all the lights the small town emitted. His fingers traced the bruises on his neck. He thought the memories of being hurt would be the ones to flashback in his memory, but the only thoughts were those of the tear covered faces of his lovers.

With a sigh, the male stood up, swaying on his feet only slightly. With heavy steps, Seungcheol dragged himself over to the RV. He wasn’t surprised to find Joshua typing furiously away at the keyboard, when he stepped in, but he was not sure if it was the best response for the moment. 

“Babe.” Seungcheol started, as he circled the bench, placing a friendly hand on Joshua’s arm. “ Babe, you should be relaxing right now.” 

Joshua only shook his head, gently shaking off the hand. 

Seungcheol sighed, and slid into the seat beside him, stretching an arm around and behind Joshua. “ I know you may think it is, but this is not the time to be researching anything.” 

No response, but Seungcheol couldn’t help the small smile appearing on his face at the intense gaze Joshua had. He knew he shouldn’t have found it cute, but he couldn’t help it. 

“ Babe.” Seungcheol tried again, leaning in closer. “ Seriously, let me look at you and see if you’re okay.”

Joshua waved a hand lazily. “ I’m okay.”

“You say that,” Seungcheol muttered, reaching out his other hand to take a hold of the younger boy’s face gently. “ But I want to see the proof.” 

There was slight resistance when the eldest male began to pull at the boy’s chin, but ultimately Joshua gave up. Seungcheol’s soft smile faltered at the red cheek. Hesitantly, Seungcheol reached a hand up and caressed the face. His fingers grazing the skin ever so gently. Joshua flinched slightly at the contact. 

With a saddened smile Seungcheol leaned forward and gently pecked Joshua’s temple. “ Doesn’t look too bad… I was worried it was worse.”

Joshua scrunched up his nose. “ Jeonghan would never hurt me.”

Seungcheol nodded his head. “ He doesn’t know that.”

Joshua’s bottom lip popped out softly as he gazed longingly at their door. “ Did you talk with him?”

Nodding, Seungcheol gently combed his fingers through Joshua’s hair. “ A little.” After a beat of silence. “ He loves you so much, you know that right?”

Joshua’s head bobbed up and down rapidly. “ Of course. Of course I do! I love him too!”

“ And he knows that.”

“ Does he though?” Joshua asked, his voice quiet. Seungcheol took in a deep breath, and quickly tightened his arm around Joshua’s shoulders, bringing him into his side. 

“ You know,” He started, gently pressing his lips against the younger’s hair. “ He doesn’t know how much. He definitely knows we love him, he knows we care for him. He knows we will help him. But he also says his father loves him.” 

The silence felt suffocating. Joshua’s fingers stilled and fell onto his lap. 

“His father didn’t love him.” Joshua mumbled. Seungcheol closed his eyes, letting the scent of Joshua’s shampoo calm him. The silence continued. 

After a few moments, Seungcheol spoke up again. “ Jeonghan didn’t want to hit you.”

“He didn’t hit me.” Joshua hissed out, trying to sit up. Seungcheol quickly held on tighter, and shook his head, pulling the boy to his side. 

“Listen.” Seungcheol ordered, his voice strict. Joshua deflated in his arms, his face falling against Seungcheol’s shoulder. “ What Jeonghan saw, and remembers, and is thinking about right this moment, is the fact that his hand made painful contact with your body. You know, and I know, that it was done at the demon and not you. But he knows how much trust is lost when you are hurt by a loved one.”

“ I didn’t lose any trust in him though.” 

Seungcheol took in a deep breath. “ Joshua, I love that you are able to separate the two. I love that you understand what happened, and you don’t hold anything against Jeonghan. But sweety, your body, instinctually, may not.”

Joshua twisted his head slightly, his hair falling in front of his eyes. Seungcheol continued to speak.

“ Joshua, while you are not scared of Jeonghan. Your body is now aware of a possible danger and if you ever feel uncomfortable or something you have to tell us. I’ve sat with Jeonghan through the same thing, I’m not an expert but,”

“Jeonghan won’t hurt me! It was one time.” Joshua exclaimed, pushing away from Seungcheol. “ And my instincts understands! He is not a danger to me! He’s scared Seungcheol! Why are you comforting me when he’s the one having a meltdown?!” 

Seungcheol watched Joshua curl up in a ball away from him. Licking his lips, Seungcheol reached out, but Joshua only looked away. “ Joshua. This isn’t- that’s not.” The eldest breathed in deeply. “ I’m making sure you’re okay Joshua. I want to know that you’re fine, that you weren’t injured, so that I can go back to Jeonghan and tell him you are okay.” 

Joshua narrowed his eyes at Seungcheol, challenging. “ I’m fine.” His words sounded final. 

“ This is not an argument Joshua. Neither of us are going to be mad at you if you are not okay, or feel scared or anything.”

“ I’m fine.” He repeated.

“ Joshua.”

“ I’m fine! Jeonghan’s the one who can’t stand to be at my side anymore, who kicked me out of the room when he’s freaking out! You decided to come try to take care of me like I’m the weak one of the group- which thanks by the way- instead of Jeonghan who clearly needs someone more than me.”

Seungcheol could feel his own fingers clawing at his legs. “ Joshua. Right now, it isn’t about Jeonghan.” The eldest watched Joshua’s hand reach out to his laptop, absentmindedly tapping the keyboard. “ I love him. I know you love him, and he loves us both. When he calms down you can give him a big hug, and you two can cuddle and everything. However right now, right now you need to be honest with me. Are you okay?”

Joshua shrugged curling into a tighter ball on the bench. His other hand reached down to play with the laces of his shoes. “ I’m okay.” The boy’s voice was soft, all fight had left him. “ Can I go back to my research now?”

“ What are you researching?” Seungcheol asked, slowly moving closer to the smaller male. 

Joshua glanced up, watching Seungcheol slowly shuffle over. The movements were slightly awkward, creating a soft smile appear on the younger’s lips. “ Just, you know, the usual.”

Seungcheol raised an eyebrow. “ Sweety, if its about todays events, please don’t. Just take a break.”

Joshua shook his head. “ Please just, just go back to Jeonghan. I’m fine, really. I won’t be on the computer for too long, I promise.” 

“Josh.”

“I promise.” 

With a shake of his own head, Seungcheol gave up. He shuffled a little closer to the boy, to peck him on the cheek before sliding out of the booth. Seungcheol wanted to press farther, harder. He wanted Joshua to talk about the events that happened, but he barely had the energy himself. The eldest stretched as he sat up, cracking his back slightly. 

“You’re getting old.” Joshua mumbled. The clacking of the keyboard heard in the background. 

“ And you’re not?” Seungcheol snarked back before gazing at the interior of the RV. His eyes scanned over the broken plates, choosing to skip over those questions for the time being, and focused on the hard drive lazily sitting behind the passenger seat. He picked it up, fiddling with it before sliding it on the lunch table. “ Why was your hard drive on the floor?”

Joshua barely even spared it a glance. “ It grew legs and walked away.”

“Joshua.”

“Crazier shit has happened Cheolie.” 

Seungcheol breathed in deeply; Sassy Joshua was easy to handle when he was goofing off, laughing, having fun. Sassy Joshua when he was avoiding a conversation was difficult. The eldest stared helplessly at the younger, his eyes traveling from the boy’s eyes to his lips, down to his shoulders and following the arm to the tips of his fingers. Joshua’s eyes flickered over to glance at Seungcheol. The youngest’s felt a pout appearing.

He returned his gaze to his laptop. “ I’m sorry. I just, please just let me do this.”

Seungcheol patted the table a couple of times as recognition of his statement, before stepping out of the RV. The eldest male wandered for a few minutes, always taking a couple steps back to the house, but ultimately deciding to turn around. He dragged his palms against his face. 

“ For fucks sake.” Seungcheol groaned, slamming his head against the side of the RV. 

“Seungcheol?” Joshua’s voice rang through the windows.

“Yeah?”

“Just checking.”

The male sighed, turning around to press his back against the RV, slowly sliding down until his legs laid flat in front of him. He was lost.

He didn’t know what to do. He didn’t know how to help either of them, how to fix this. He has spent the past few years learning about ghosts, struggling to keep up with he knowledge Joshua spewed at them about poltergeists, electronics, temperature, and the likes and yet none of it meant anything at that exact moment. He wasn’t like Joshua; He couldn’t just go and open a laptop magically knowing what his next search would be. Seungcheol doesn’t even know what he wants to do next on any particular day. 

The male closed his eyes, listening to the world around him. The birds’ songs traveled to his ears. The distant sound of a busy street harmonized softly. The rumbling of his vehicle created a sense of a bass drum. There was so much around him, and he had no clue what to do with any of it. 

Seungcheol didn’t know how much time had passed, but eventually he heard the door of the house creak open. There were soft, slow steps making their way towards him. He didn’t care to open his eyes. A moment later a presence shimmied into place beside him. A head curled onto his shoulder. An arm hooked around his own. Fingers curled over his own hand, squeezing tightly. 

“Hannie?” Seungcheol asked quietly. The head bobbed slightly on his shoulder. The eldest turned his wrist around, and connected their fingers quickly. “Hannie, Joshua is-,”

“ Studying.” Jeonghan’s voice was soft, rough, cracking. “ I know.” 

“ Are you okay?” Seungcheol whispered, scared of the answer.

“Are you?”

Seungcheol’s eyes struggled to open as he turned his head to look at the younger boy. Beside him, Jeonghan had his chin planted on the eldest’s shoulder. His eyes serious, determined as they stared straight into Seungcheol’s. Jeonghan’s eyes softened as he searched the other’s. 

“Seungcheol?” Jeonghan asked, lifting a hand to comb through the other’s hair. 

“ I’m sorry.” Seungcheol confessed. Jeonghan tilted his head, his eyebrows furrowed. 

“ You have done nothing wrong.” Jeonghan responded, letting his hand trail down Seungcheol’s face, tracing the edges. 

“ I shouldn’t have accepted the job.” 

“Yeah, maybe.” Jeonghan teased, his voice still soft. Seungcheol chuckled for a moment, playfully shoving Jeonghan. The second eldest smiled back, gazing into the other’s eyes. “ but this job isn’t the reason everything happened.” The beautiful male’s eyes suddenly hardened. “ You weren’t in control of what happened today.”

Seungcheol felt Jeonghan’s hand start to slip out of his. Quickly, Seungcheol used his other hand to hold Jeonghan’s between the two. “ You weren’t either.”

Jeonghan’s head bowed, his hair falling in front of his eyes. “ But I hit Joshua.”

“ You didn’t want to.”

“That doesn’t make it okay. It doesn’t matter what ever excuse you use, whatever way you twist it. I hit ‘Shua.” Jeonghan pressed. His free hand diving underneath his hair, covering his eyes. “ I hit Joshua like my dad hit me.”

“NO!” Seungcheol exclaimed.

If someone listened closely, they could hear the faint tapping of the keyboard in the RV come to a halt. 

“No.” Seungcheol said quieter. “ It is not the same. You weren’t hitting Joshua, you were hitting a demon. You were trying to protect Joshua, trying to protect me.”

“But Joshua, Joshua looked so scared.” Jeonghan choked out, his shoulders beginning to shake. “I’ve never seen him so scared.”

“ He didn’t know what was happening, of course he was scared. He’s more scared of the fact you won’t go near him again.”

Seungcheol slipped a hand away, wrapping it tightly around Jeonghan’s shoulders. As his head protectively rested on the top of the other boys’ he continued; “ He loves you so much. He knows something is going on, he knows its about a demon. He knows you would never hurt him.” 

“ But I did. Seungcheol I did.” 

“ Jeonghan.” Seungcheol hissed out, backing away, forcing Jeonghan to look up at him. “ You had no control over that.” Hesitantly, Seungcheol traced the hand marks on his neck. “ Just like he had no control over what he was doing. I am not going to hold this over his head, and you can not hold that over yours. You think he is upset now, imagine what would happen if you kept yourself away.”

Jeonghan’s eyes focused on the purple bruises on the eldest neck. He lifted a hand, tracing them softly. “Were you scared?”

Seungcheol felt water start to flood into the corner of his eyes as he responded: “Terrified. I couldn’t do anything, wouldn’t do anything.” 

“I’m so sorry.” This voice was new. 

Jeonghan and Seungcheol rapidly turned their attention to the side door of the RV. With one foot still hovering inside, Joshua made his exit. A hand was pressed against the wall, curling into the indents, shaking. “ I didn’t know. I didn’t." Joshua started. His gaze were flashed from object to object; the wall, Seungcheol’s eyes, Jeonghan’s lips, Seungcheol’s arm, Jeonghan’s hair, Seungcheol’s neck, Jeonghan’s shivering hands. 

“I didn’t know, I didn’t know you were hurt. Why didn’t I know you were hurt?” Joshua cried out. “ and Jeonghan, Jeonghan please don’t leave me. I don’t know what happened, but I trust you. I trust Seungcheol. I really, really-,” Tears poured out of his eyes. “ I really don’t want to be left alone. I thought it would be fine. I thought I was the only, only one. Why did it hurt you guys? Why is this happening?” His shoulders started to shake. 

Jeonghan reached a hand out hesitantly, but quickly snapped it back to his side.

The youngest continued.

“ I swear I’m not upset. I’m not scared. I mean I am scared, but not of you, never of you. Jeonghan please, don’t leave me, don’t leave us.” Joshua’s gasped as he tried to breathe. “ Seungcheol I promise, I promise I didn’t want to hurt you. Why did I hurt you? Why don’t I know what I’m doing? Why can’t I-,” And suddenly he was coughing. 

In a second, Seungcheol was on his feet, taking cautious steps towards the boy. “ Joshua, sweety, I need you to start breathing.”

“I’m so sorry. I’m really,” A hiccup. “ Really, really truly, sorry. I’m selfish I know, I know. Just, please don’t leave me.” The boy was running out of air. 

Joshua felt him self stagger as he made a desperate step to the two boys. Seungcheol was at his side in a flash, a hand on the small of his back, another holding onto his wrist gently. Jeonghan stared in horror, his hands curling tightly into his jeans. 

“Jeonghan please don’t hate me.” Joshua managed to spill out, as he tried to even out his breathing. “ Please don’t stay away.”

No bullet could compete with the pain those words caused. Jeonghan’s own eyes were soon spilling over with tears, and he was stumbling his way to the smaller boy. “ Of course, of course. Anything for you.” 

Minutes passed with the three of them at the steps of their RV. Cars passed slowly, but no one spent more than a curious second looking at them. Promises, and tears were shared amongst the three. Seungcheol stepped back slightly, letting the other two reunite. He watched Jeonghan’s hands hover over the boy, fingers barely tangling themselves into the other’s hair. All the while, Joshua had his fingers clawing to get closer. The eldest of the three nodded his head in understanding, kissing both of their temples softly, as if they would break. 

After a fourth car passed, Seungcheol finally ushered them into the RV. At the sight of the bed, Seungcheol felt his shoulders deflating. He took a tempted step forward, only to notice the other two curl into the lunch table. With only slight regret Seungcheol moved into the bench across from them, laying his head against the wall, a content smile on his face. 

Jeonghan had a hand pressed firmly on the top of Joshua’s laptop; a threat to not open it up. Luckily, Joshua seemed more content clinging onto Jeonghan’s arms. The night passed quietly in there. During silences, Seungcheol watched Joshua’s eyes flicker to his laptop. He watched the boys arms twitch in the direction of his technology. Occasionally, Seungcheol found himself fading in his seat. He would find himself waking at the laughter of the other two. It wasn’t a bad way to be startled awake, but as the hours ticked by, he began to question his sanity for ignoring the bed. 

When he was about to announce himself turning in, Joshua asked a question; 

“ So are we going back?” 

Jeonghan and Seungcheol exchanged looks, before Jeonghan replied; “ Do you want to?” 

Joshua’s hand had somehow made it’s way to hover over his laptop. “ Well, yeah.” 

“ You don’t want to take a break?” Seungcheol asked.

Joshua mutely shook his head. 

“ What’s going on in your mind Joshy?” Jeonghan questioned.

The youngest sighed, his own eyes watching his fingers brush over his hard drive. “ Don’t be mad at me.”

Seungcheol gently grasped the other boy’s hand, rubbing his thumb against the soft skin. “ What is it?”

“ I need answers.” He began, his eyes hiding behind his hair. “ I think the house, will at least give me direction and I really, I really just want this to end.”

Jeonghan nodded at his side, sympathetically. “ Alright.” 

Seungcheol sighed, already pushing himself out of his seat. “ Then I guess we are spending the night there after all. Grab a jacket, both of you.” 

 

And that’s how they found themselves back in the house. Seungcheol was the first to enter, followed by Joshua. Jeonghan wavered by the foot of the door, but once they all entered, they moved on autopilot. Jeonghan went upstairs with Joshua, fixing up the cameras, while Seungcheol organized the equipment on the first floor. 

Walking through the halls, Joshua’s body twitched in multiple directions. Every moment he felt his hands reach out unnecessarily, the young male hook a hand around one of his boyfriend’s arms. Jeonghan spent most of his time at the youngest’s side, hoping that whatever Angel abilities he was granted - real or fake- would help quiet the demons. 

Once everything was complete, the three males found themselves sitting in the living room of the house; it was mostly bare. A few chairs were left, only to be covered with a thin white blanket collecting dust. Jeonghan had placed himself on the floor, back against the bottom of a stray couch. Joshua’s head was comfortably laying on his lap, a computer just an arms length away, broadcasting live footage of the building around them. Seungcheol laid across the covered couch, a hand lazily dripping over Jeonghan’s shoulder. The eldest’s eyes drooping occasionally as the hands on the watch ticked ever so slowly. 

“ Nothing has popped up on the scanners in an hour.” Jeonghan whined, his hands fiddling with the ends of Joshua’s hair. 

Joshua chuckled softly, but there was little joy in the sound. “ Maybe they were all scared off by me.” 

At the words, Seungcheol stared sadly at the boy spread across the floor. The ever tensed shoulders, the messy hair, and twitching hands did not go unnoticed by the oldest. Biting the inside of his cheek, Seungcheol chose to not dive into the emotional conversation at that moment, instead he said;

“ Yeah, you’re pretty intimidating.” 

Joshua’s head twisted quickly, playfully glaring up at Seungcheol. He held up a hand, curling it as if it had claws. “ Hiss.”

Seungcheol pushed himself up and over Jeonghan slightly, pressing his lips softly against the younger boy’s knuckles. “ Terrifying.”

In the corner of his eye, Seungcheol noticed Jeonghan’s hands shaking. After the gentle kiss on the male’s hands, Seungcheol turned his head to peck Jeonghan’s soft cheeks. Jeonghan eyed him curiously, but didn’t turn his head. Instead of responding, Seungcheol leaned back onto the couch, closing his eyes. 

A few moments passed before Jeonghan spoke up: “ We could always contact them directly.”

Having been only minutes away from slumber, Seungcheol groaned at the words. “ If they wanted to talk with us, they would. We’ve already made ourselves known.”

“What if they’re all gone then?”

Joshua’s lips pursed as he scrolled through the information on his laptop. “ You think? But the boy used a ouija boy to talk with them, there had to be a ghost or two here.”

Seungcheol opened his eyes, staring at the chipped ceiling. “ And one of them possessed the boy. They left, so the spirit is probably gone too.”

“ Well maybe the demon is, but there are always spirits nearby guarding, or just watching over areas.” Joshua noted. “ Ouija boards can be used to talk with good ghosts too, or well neutral ones. Maybe they have some information.”

Jeonghan’s hand hovered over the tufts of brown hair on Joshua’s head, ultimately deciding to just lay his hand back on the floor. “ Thought you didn’t want to use traditional methods.” 

Joshua scrunched up his nose. “ Ouija board doesn’t count because we are neither, imprisoning, hurting, or you know exorcising a demon. It’s just talking.” 

“ Do you even have a Ouija board?” Seungcheol questioned. After a moment, Joshua shook his head. “Then how did you expect to talk with one?”

“ I was hoping to use the child’s.”

The two eldest males stared at the youngest curiously. The boy only glanced up with an awkward smile. 

“ Earlier when I was putting the cameras upstairs by myself, I went into the kid’s room. I don’t know how I found it really, I just had this sudden urge to look around the room. I found it under the floorboards.” Joshua explained. 

The second eldest’s eyes narrowed. “ Did you touch it?”

“Well, yeah.” Joshua mumbled. “ It’s not a big deal.” 

Jeonghan could feel the minuscule pain running through his face as his hand came in contact with his forehead. With a repressed sigh, Jeonghan gently moved Joshua off of his lap. 

“Where you going?” The youngest asked. Seungcheol’s eyes zoomed in on the sudden rapid tapping from Joshua’s left hand. Random letters appearing on a word document on the laptop. 

Jeonghan however glanced back before tiredly pointing at the ceiling. It wasn’t hard finding the child’s room. Jeonghan just had to climb the stairs and turn right, down the hallway and it was two doors down. The door in front of him still had tape lazily placed on the wood. It creaked as he pushed it open. The bedroom was mostly bare, save a bed post, a dresser and a couple of stray clothing items here and there. The investigators’ camera was placed in a the high corner facing the door. Near the closet was a couple planks of wood neatly stacked beside a gaping hole. With a sigh, Jeonghan shuffled over and peered down into it. Just as Joshua had said, a ouija board, out of it’s box, was hiding behind the floorboards. As he crouched down, reaching an arm out to grab it, the boy felt a force tugging on his arm, away from the ghost board. Blinking, confused, Jeonghan pushed his arm towards it with more determination. The force became stronger, seemingly begging him to pull it away. The palm of his hand felt like it was magnetized away from the board more and more, every time he inched it closer. 

“ For the love of-,” Jeonghan practically cursed putting in all his energy to grab the board. Expecting a battle of tug of war with the game, he pulled the board out quickly. However, as he swung the game out, it felt as if the force had repelled greatly, and he staggered backwards. His shoulders suddenly weighed tons, his fingers struggled with the weight of the wood in his hand. 

Annoyed, Jeonghan trudged his body back out of the room. His spine was tingled, his arm shook, his patience thinned. He struggled down the stairs slightly, so when he arrived back in the living room where Joshua and Seungcheol sat, the second eldest hastily tossed it onto the floor, the looking glass piece magically staying on top. “ There it is.” 

Seungcheol noted the stop in Joshua’s hand jitters when Jeonghan slid in. 

And like that, the game was a go. Joshua had initiated it, sitting them in a circle around the board. He explained the simple rules; no taking your hand off of the cursor, do not let the cursor slide off the board, must say goodbye or the gate is sealed. When they first started, Jeonghan felt his whole body clawing at his heart to leave the room. Joshua’s and Seungcheol’s focused faces though, forced the beautiful male to fight against all of his instincts. 

Joshua spoke first. “ Is anyone there who is willing to talk with us?”

Silence. 

Seungcheol coughed before following up: “ My name’s Seungcheol, or S.Coups. Anyone share the same name here? We could become buddies!” Jeonghan lightly shoved the elder, who only gave a cheesy grin in return.  
Silence. 

Joshua’s eyes focused on the cursor, his eyes practically burning holes into the plastic. “ Jeonghan.”

The boy named shot his head up to look at the other. “ Yeah?”

“Take your hand off.”

“But you said-,”

“Please Hannie.” 

So the second eldest slowly slid his fingers off of the cursor. In a millisecond afterwards the cursor slid over the word ‘YES’ on the board. Jeonghan’s lips parted slightly, eyebrows furrowed. He would be lying if he hadn’t felt slightly insulted. 

The youngest let out a breath of air. “ What is your name?”

A few seconds passed, and Joshua was ready to ask another when the cursor shuffled around. The letters spelled out: HANSOL. Absentmindedly, Joshua nodded at the letters. 

“Hansol?” Joshua reiterated. Quickly, the plastic moved to the ‘YES’. 

The conversation from there was slow, the plastic scraping across the board at paces Jeonghan could hardly bare to watch. Seungcheol’s eyes drooped occasionally but would flutter open when he would feel a tug on the cursor forcing him to bend over a bit. They learned little about him with the one word answers; Passed away over a hundred years ago due to suicide over a cheating wife. Long silences came often. Seungcheol joked about bad connection. Fifteen minutes into it, Joshua finally cracked down on the questions. 

“ Did you know the last family who lived here a few months back?” 

‘YES’

“ Do you know what happened to their son?”

A pause of a few minutes before it responded: ‘ YES’.

“ Was he possessed?” Seungcheol questioned.

‘NO’

“ Traumatized?”

‘NO’

Jeonghan leaned back on his arms rolling his eyes at the conversation, it was taking too long in his opinion. “ What happened?”

Laggardly, the plastic moved through the alphabet, ultimately spelling: ‘ KISSED’.

“ Kissed? What is that supposed to mean?” Seungcheol asked. Jeonghan’s gaze watched as Joshua’s less dominant hand quickly scribbled some words into a notebook beside him. 

The board was quiet. The three boys exchanged glances. Jeonghan had crossed his legs, leaning on the knees towards the board. 

“ By the demon?” Joshua spoke.

 

‘YES’.

Joshua scribbled more words in the corner of his notebook. Curious, Jeonghan leaned over a bit, sneaking a peak of the book. He was slightly disappointed to just see the words just spoken neatly written on separate lines, but his eyes skimmed over a few more randomly placed between lines. 

Boy …. Similar?  
Possessed….. No  
Traumatized…. No  
Chosen….. N/A  
Kissed ….. Demon?  
Demon….. Witch? Carnival?  
Me?

The wheels in Jeonghan’s mind started to turn rapidly, ignoring the questions Joshua was asking at that exact moment. As memories of the past week transported around Jeonghan’s mind almost painfully as if he could punch the answers out of himself, Joshua continued to garner information. 

“ How was he kissed?” 

‘LIPS.’

Seungcheol let out a soft chuckle at that: “ I feel like that was obvious ‘Shua.”

“ I was hoping for some more details as to how it actually happened, time place, why him etc…”Joshua scrunched up his nose. “ But fine. Why was he kissed?”

‘ VESSEL’ 

Joshua squinted his eyes, staring at the cursor. “ Vessel? Like a container?” 

Jeonghan’s mind slipped back into present day his own eyes narrowing slightly. “ Like a holder of something, or a, a predecessor?”

‘YES’ 

“Predecessor?” Joshua questioned, his head tilting slightly, his hand automatically writing the word into the journal.

“ Yeah. I, well the priest told me how sometimes demons choose predecessors.” Jeonghan’s gaze had cautiously glanced at Seungcheol. The eldest male stared back, unsure of what the other wanted from him. 

“What does that mean? How can a human be a predecessor for a demon?” Joshua pressed, his hand in an uncomfortable angle as he wrote, all the while struggling to hold eye contact with Jeonghan. The youngest knew they were no longer solely talking about the child. To be honest, Joshua wondered if they ever were.

‘PHYSICAL’.

“I’m guessing,” Jeonghan let out a soft breath. “ I’m guessing a human’s physical body helps them complete tasks they can’t do by themselves without full possession.”

“Then why not possess? It’s simpler.” Seungcheol wondered.

‘ENERGY’

Joshua suddenly felt the plastic beneath his fingers heating up. His head snapped down to look at it. Seungcheol’s hand seemed unfazed, even the expression - when Joshua turned to look at him- seemed unbothered.

 

“Can Energy b-,” Before Jeonghan could ask another question, Joshua opened his mouth. The youngest hadn’t meant to interrupt the other. He really hadn’t. He was writing all of his other questions, ready to ask them in due time, patiently, nicely. But the need to know suddenly casted a spell on him, his lips moving before he could process the words. 

“ Who am I?”

‘JOSHUA’

“ Do you know me?”

‘NO’

“Do you know my demon?”

Silence.

Quietness.

Deafening.

‘YES’

“ Am I dangerous?”

‘YES’

Seungcheol and Jeonghan glanced nervously at each other. 

‘ Is he dangerous?”

‘YES’

‘ Can I stop him?’

‘NO’

And like that, the cursor slipped from beneath Joshua’s fingers and onto the wooden floor. Lights from their electronics shut off. Echoes of cameras falling filled the silence. Seungcheol had snapped a hand out, grasping at Jeonghan’s leg tightly, the other reaching for Joshua’s hand on the board. 

In front of the youngest, the letters on the board seemed to mold, and bend. Numbers switched places with letters, letters slid over useless lines. Almost everything began to merge with one another until only one word was left;

‘GOODBYE’ 

Terrified, Joshua glanced back at his solace, his notes. His hand was shakily dragging the pencil in jagged lines across the paper. Joshua watched unsure. That is, until his hand fell limp to the side, and the pencil rolled off onto the floor. Written with rips into the paper was the question:

“ Are You Scared?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone!
> 
> Over a month and you are still here? Honestly I am amazed, honored, heartwarmed, and stunned. I'm so glad you all here, so it is only fair you all receive an explanation of some sort. 
> 
> A couple of weeks ago, my friend passed away by overdosed accidentally. I didn't want to do anything for a long while.I was hoping to let myself take a break, and not let my emotions affect the work. Turns out, when I tried to start writing it again everytime I wrote it became incredibly depressing. While it is angsty, I do try to not let this become too dark in favor of the point of the story being characterization and the basic plot. I do not want the way of storytelling be randomly changed so close to the end. I tried writing it again a little later, and while not as depressing I just couldn't get it the way I wanted. Obviously every chapter, every line is not going to be my best but you do all deserve at least average writing to read. Finally I decided to fuck it and just write it. In general every chapter has three main points I try to touch upon, however I accidentally put in over five points in this chapter. The reason being while writing it, I felt it ( The points made) were not deserving of a month hiatus, it needed more. I also need to make sure the ending is fit for these chapters. So, a lot of planning, a lot of emotions and little idea of how to schedule time. 
> 
> If any of my readers do drugs, please for the love of god don't be stupid about it. I am not going to rant about it on here, but please, please. Be careful, know what you are doing. I don't condone drugs, nor smoking. (Prescription drugs and Medical and for Anxiety Marijuana are a different story) But I know I can't control anyone, and I want you all to just be safe, no matter what you choose to do.
> 
> Please. People don't have time to say goodbye when something goes wrong by accident. 
> 
> Now off of that and back to the fun author's note. 
> 
> How did you guys enjoy this chapter? I hope you enjoyed it! I feel it may be quite boring compared to the others but its also late, and I'm a terrible judge of character anytime past eleven.  
> Joshua and Jeonghan may have have apologized to each other, but is everything okay between them?  
> How is Seungcheol? We've made it through the night at the house.... what's next? What do you think is going to happen?  
> Most importantly, are you okay? 
> 
> ALSO! I thought I should find a way to keep in contact and up to date with my readers and followers! In other words I made a twitter...literally as I was uploading this because my mind can't concentrate. I am WhatVaySay ( @VayWhat).... as I was writing this I literally got locked out. This is my luck. (It's all fixed now I swear)
> 
> I rival Kwangsoo from Runningman with being unlucky, I swear. 
> 
>  
> 
> Thank you for staying with me. 
> 
> Take care of yourselves.
> 
> With all of the love:
> 
> V.AY


	14. CHAPTER 13:The Angel's Turn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “What about the boy.”
> 
> ‘ HE. WILL. DIE’ 
> 
> The next question was almost too scary to ask. All of Jeonghan was shaking at that point, his whole body begging him to stop. 
> 
> “And Joshua?”
> 
> ‘ DEATH SAYS HI”

Jeonghan had sat in rooms before, where silence was just covering the lingering betrayal whispering its ways into his mind, and yet, he found himself more desperate to end such quietness at the sight of his paling boyfriend’s face. He wondered if the silence grew the more you thought of it; Jeonghan decided that could only be hell and focused on the note in front of him. His fingers grazed the paper gently, the torn edges standing like fake flames, tauntingly. Ever so slowly, he dragged the paper to himself, sliding it over the stray letters on the board. As if magic, as the paper moved, the letters underneath seemed to vanish only leaving an empty board at the end. 

The other two boys seemed frozen, even the wheels in Joshua’s head coming to a stand still. Jeonghan watched his two beloveds with tired eyes, the paper still at the tips of his fingers. The boys did not move. Biting the inside of his cheek, Jeonghan lifted the paper to himself, holding it carefully between two hands. He fiddled with it, before sighing and crumpling it tightly into a ball. 

“ Joshua, babe.” Jeonghan started. The boy in question continued to stare absently at the board. “ Babe.” He tried again, even daring to outstretch his arm. The moment it was inches from Joshua’s shoulder though, Jeonghan snapped it back to his side. “ Seungcheol.” 

“ Hmm?” Was the eldest’s tired reply. With a quick glance over he noticed Seungcheol’s eyes drooping worse than either Joshua or himself. Jeonghan wondered if the boy had slept well recently. He wished he could ask. He wished he could coddle Seungcheol’s head against his chest as they laid in their bed in the dumb RV, listening to snow fall, while Joshua read. He wished for so much, but their time was not made for wishing. 

“ We need to set up the Ouija board again.” Jeonghan announced. 

There was an exhausted sigh from Seungcheol, as his shoulders sagged. “ I don’t think that’s a-.” 

“ If this was any other day I would one hundred and twenty percent agree with you, but Seungcheol I need to do this.”  
“ It won’t work with you Hannie. We tried.” 

“ No, it won’t work with me and Joshua at the same time. There is a difference.” 

“ You know what’s also different? The board is blank… what happened to the goodbye?”

“ I wiped it off.” Jeonghan quickly stated. “ But that’s not the point-,”

“You what? It’s marker.” Seungcheol asked, his eyes suddenly wide and awake.

“ A ghost or demon named Hansol fucking rearranged the letters, a demon posses Joshua and you think me erasing the word on a messed up Ouija board is the strangest thing to happen today?”

Seungcheol’s lips twisted slightly; “ I feel like because of the circumstances I’m allowed to find normalcy in the strange and strange in the normal. Don’t-“ Seungcheol carelessly waved his hands around as if they would finish the sentence for him.

Jeonghan sighed, looking down at the crumpled paper. He felt his stomach twist; he needed to do this. When the second eldest raised his head once more, he couldn’t help but to focus on the eldest’s eyes again. His chest pulled, aching for him to get closer to him. Aching to take away anything that haunted him awake. Silently, Jeonghan stretched a hand to the other male. Gently, he placed his hand on the bent knee. The other male glanced at him tiredly. 

“ Please. We can stop once its done. Please,” Jeonghan whispered. “ You can even go back, it’ll be fine.” 

Seungcheol stubbornly shook his head. “ You are not doing this alone.” 

With a soft smile he replied. “ I won’t be, Joshua will be beside me.”  
“Hannie,” Seungcheol started. “ That’s not- you know I would feel better if I was here.”

Licking his lips in frustration, Jeonghan’s eyes fluttered across the room. His eyes focusing on a sheet-covered couch. In seconds his hand shot forward, pointing at it. “ Then sleep there.”

Tired but ever-so supportive, Seungcheol twisted his head to look at it; It was a three cushion couch, covered by a thin plastic blanket. Dust was piling up. The oldest of the three, felt his nose begin to scrunch up at the sight. He could practically feel the need to sneeze itching at his nose. Seungcheol twisted his neck around, only slightly-dramatic compared to what the other two would have done, and gave a distasteful frown. 

“ Would you sleep there?” Seungcheol asked.

There was a moment of silence. Jeonghan’s eyes had widened before they squinted as the boy’s face crumpled together. His lips twisted. 

With a chuckle Seungcheol relaxed his head back. “That’s what I thought.” 

However the intelligent tactic didn’t deter Jeonghan. “Beggars can’t be choosers Cheolie.”

“ I didn’t ask for a bed, I asked for you to not talk to the dead.”

“ You guys got to talk to the dead.” Jeonghan whined.

“ That isn’t even what this conversation is about.”

“Then what is it about?”

“It’s about you wanting to go back into a conversation-,”

Jeonghan interrupted. “ Which you two got to do.”

“-which we did, yes, but you saw how it ended. I think we are all a little too spooked right now to do it.” 

“I’m not asking for a we, I’m asking for a me.” Jeonghan crossed his arms. 

Seungcheol laid his body flat against the floor, an arm covering his eyes. Jeonghan could already sense the victory in his bones. “Check on Joshua before you do anything stupid.”

Jeonghan’s head snapped over to look at the other boy. “Joshua?”

Finally, the youngest looked up. His eyes seemed dazed, lost. Not only had his skin lightened immensely, but so had his eyes. Jeonghan reached over slowly, his hands careful when curling around the younger’s. 

“ Hey, welcome back sweety.” Jeonghan whispered. “ I’m going to use the ouija board, okay?”

The younger’s eyes widened. Joshua’s grip tightened around the other’s. “ But-,” The voice was scratchy, but still soft. Jeonghan’s thumb gently caressed the skin beneath it. 

“ It’ll be okay.” 

“ The-the n-note.”

“What about it?”

Joshua’s head seemed to twitch slightly, eyes jumping to look behind his boyfriend, than back to his face.  
“ Are you scared?” 

Seungcheol had let his arm drop from his face, as he watched the two.

“ Maybe a little.” Jeonghan confessed. “ But it will be okay.”

The youngest rapidly shook his head. “ No, I want, I want to go back.”

“Back?”

Joshua himself seemed confused at the comment; his eyebrows furrowing, lips parting only slightly. His voice became quieter as he spoke; “ Back…?”

Jeonghan lifted his hand up to the younger’s cheek. “ Well, we can go back then, we will go back where ever you want. I promise.” Slowly, the color came back to the youngest’s eyes. Jeonghan couldn’t help the smile from sneaking onto his own face. “ So beautiful.” He whispered. 

As if it was the magic word, Joshua’s gaze was relaxed. No longer did his eyes flutter around the room, unsure. The boy gazed into Jeonghan’s eyes desperately. “Hannie.”

“ Yes Shua?” 

“ I’m scared.” 

“Oh, oh Joshua.” Jeonghan sighed lovingly. Crawling over the board, Jeonghan cradled the youngest in his arms. Seungcheol reached a hand over, letting it pat the youngest’s thigh gently. The second oldest, combed his finger’s through the youngest’s hair. Joshua’s eyes fluttered closed. The youngest’s body going practically limp in Jeonghan’s arms. 

Jeonghan thought, as he cradled the boy: Perhaps it was all too much for Joshua today, for any of them. Perhaps they needed a good rest. 

The room went quiet, the wind stilled. To Jeonghan, even the comforting sounds of his lovers’ breathing was muted. Even with his lips attached to Joshua’s hair, Jeonghan could see Seungcheol’s concerned eyes. The long haired boy knew the difficult choices Seungcheol made throughout his life; Knew that turning down the Ouija board- their best source for information- was a tough decision. Seungcheol’s eyes, gazing at them with love and worry, showed just that. He knew Seungcheol only wanted the best for them. 

Jeonghan, knew Seungcheol like the back of his hand, and trusted him as much as his own right hand. But Jeonghan, despite the tingles in his body at the idea of his fingers on the curser, knew they could not forget the power the simple ghost board had. 

His mind whispered, their relationship won’t end, just because of a little betrayal. 

And those whispers, those thoughts floated in his head as the three of them leaned against the blanketed couch together. Jeonghan watched as the boys curled into one another, fingers gripping at the ends of cloth for dear life. The smallest of smiles appeared on the second eldest’s face as he watched the two. 

It was a silent agreement, that the three of them were going to sleep. Seungcheol’s ever drooping eyes acting as the signature for the deal, and Joshua’s shaking hands acting as a pen. Their bodies’ snug against one another evidence of their contract. Jeonghan could feel his own name was written with water, as he slipped away from the two, sliding off of their figurative paper.

As he slid back to the ouija board, Jeonghan gazed at his lovers. 

They wouldn’t hate him for this, not when Jeonghan was so sure it was the right thing to do. Jeonghan bet that if Seungcheol was not so exhausted, he would have been the one defying their agreement. (Jeonghan knows he’d have lost that bet, but the thought still made him feel better.)

Once noticing the curser was far from the board, Jeonghan crawled towards it. With every movement a floor board creaked. Every breathe lost to the re-appearing wind. Only moments prior did the room seem bare of life, of sound. Jeonghan could not choose which was more haunting; the absence of life, or the tantalizing possibility of a soul. 

Despite his shivering shoulders telling him other ways, Jeonghan felt the room was heating up. His heart thumping against his chest as he grabbed the cursor and crawled back to the board.  
He’s doing the right thing. Just because someone else decided it was wrong for them, did not make it wrong for him. 

Jeonghan breathed deeply as he settled beside the board. His fingers grazed the board. Still a blank slate, Jeonghan decided to rummage through Joshua’s belongings. Moments later, he found a pen and with determination labeled the ouija board once more.  
Even with the imperfect handwriting, and the shaky letters; Even with the slight smudges, the board was changed. The word goodbye, no longer alone. It looked how it did before. It looked as if nothing happened. It looked almost as if everything was but a nightmare in their mind. 

Curiously Jeonghan scratched at the black lettering, only to hear the echo of his scratching with nothing to show for it underneath his fingernails; the board stayed in tact. 

Before placing the cursor back on to the board, Jeonghan fiddled with it in his hands. He wondered if it would even work. 

It didn’t work last time he attempted to use it. And while Jeonghan claimed it was because both Joshua and himself were attempting to maneuver it, it failed, he was not so sure where his logic came from. It was highly possible any attempt at Jeonghan trying to use the Ouija board would end in just failure. At the same time, there is also a possibility that it will succeed, and Jeonghan will be able to ask the questions he was dying to have answered.

But also, if it were to succeed, Jeonghan could create a chaotic mess even the three of them couldn’t fix, let alone Jeonghan by himself. 

Jeonghan took in a shaky breath, and placed the cursor on the board. The aging creaks of the window did nothing to calm the boy’s nerves. He carelessly flicked the cursor a bit, waiting in silence to see if it would escape from the board once more. When it didn’t, Jeonghan deemed it time. 

He placed both hands gently on the tip of the triangle. His fingers just barely feeling the cold plastic. Before he could open his lips to greet the other side, the sharpest shiver went down his spine. His voice caught in his throat. He felt his fingers tremble oh, so slightly. Jeonghan’s gaze flashed from corner to corner of the room. Almost automatically, he twisted his head to check on Joshua and Seungcheol. With relief they laid their still, but not frozen. 

Jeonghan turned back to the board, curling his knees beneath him. He ignored the ever growing shivers down his spine as he took in one more deep breath. 

“ Hi. I guess.” Jeonghan started, his voice just barely above a whisper. “ Is there anyone willing to speak with me?”

He pursed his lips slightly as he waited. “ Hello?”

Silence.

“ I know I’m not like devil inspired. I heard about how I am probably not who you want to talk to and all that, but um-,” Jeonghan sighed. “ I’d appreciate it, if one of you would speak with me.”

A faint creak of the floorboards in another room. 

Jeonghan was too tired for this.

“ Seriously, speak to me.” 

A window banged open. Jeonghan jumped slightly, but his fingers never left their place. 

“ Are you guys arguing about who should talk with me, because thats fucking rude.” Jeonghan joked, but even the humor couldn’t scare away his own fear. 

Once again silence.

“For fucks sake,” Jeonghan growled. “ You’re fucking dead, what else do you have to do with your life? And whats the worse can happen? You die again? Oh shit, such a shame. Maybe the second time you’d be able to actually die right and move the fuck on.” 

And with that, what sounded like raging footsteps bounding down the stairs was heard. Jeonghan whipped his head around to the archway departing the main hall and the living room. Nothing was there. In the next second the windows all snapped open. The battered shutters broke apart, stray pieces flying towards Jeonghan. The young boy ducked automatically, but did not let go. 

He twisted his head to check for his boyfriends. The boys only shuffled in their sleep, curling tighter against each other as the harsh wind from outside hit them. Jeonghan breathed in deeply; They were safe.

With his teeth clenched, Jeonghan grumbled. “ Sorry.”

But suddenly, he felt his fingers move. Jeonghan un curved his back, watching as the cursor moved to the ‘YES’. Jeonghan’s eyes widened. 

“Finally.” He muttered. 

The cursor did not move. 

“ I’m Jeonghan. Is this Hansol, from before?” The cursor agonizingly slowly moved to the ‘NO’. 

“Who are you?”

‘NO’

“ You aren’t going to tell me your name?”

‘YES’

Jeonghan sighed. He could feel his knees going numb. “ Do you know about the boy like Hansol.”

‘EVERYONE’

Jeonghan nodded, understandingly: It would be insane to think only one ghost in this house knew of the mishaps.

“ Do you know the Kid’s demon?”

There was a slight pause. Slowly, the windows began to close again. Jeonghan could hear Seungcheol and Joshua relaxing their holds on one another.

‘BAD’

“Yeah no shit. How would one get rid of him?”

‘NO.’

Jeonghan groaned. “ No is not a good enough answer.”

‘WITCH’

Jeonghan’s eyebrows furrowed. “ The Witch?”

‘OR DEATH’

The word was like a spell. Jeonghan froze. Death? Was death the answer to getting rid of the demon? Was it the death of a soul or death of the kid? Would the same go for Joshua?

“Do you know Joshua’s demon?”

‘YES’

“ Who is it?”

And slowly the cursor moved; ‘ Museum’

“What? What museum?”

Silence.

“Okay fine, what does he want?” 

‘DEATH’

Jeonghan chuckled softly, in shock. “ Death? Do you only know like five words?”

He felt the cursor start to shuffle to Goodbye, and with desperation Jeonghan slammed his hand down on the cursor stopping it in place. 

“ No you don’t. You better answer all my goddamn questions.” Jeonghan growled. “ Tell me about the demon.”

For a few moments Jeonghan felt the strong pull of the cursor to the bottom of the board, but then suddenly it relaxed. Jeonghan lightened his own grip and felt it move around the board.

‘BOY’

“What about the boy.”

‘ HE. WILL. DIE’ 

The next question was almost too scary to ask. All of Jeonghan was shaking at that point, his whole body begging him to stop. 

“And Joshua?”

‘ DEATH SAYS HI”

And then, over his shoulder Jeonghan heard a whisper;

 

 

 

“Hi.” 

With energy he didn’t know he had, Jeonghan spun on his knees, letting the board slide to the other side of the room. The tingles on his spine were replaced with sharp needles. The feeling of desperate fingers digging into his shoulder, trying to drag him away did nothing. The sudden rise in the wind, forcing his hair to flutter in front of his face, did nothing. His fingers, already curled ready to punch, stood still. In front of him was not death, and could not be death. 

But in front of him was Joshua, and yet Jeonghan knew, it could not be Joshua. 

The man in front of him was leaning forward, his head crooked, and his smile scarily stretched across Joshua’s face. The eyes were wide, bloodshot. The hair was drenched with sweat. His hands reached out, slightly in front of him, the fingers twitching as if dying to get a hold of what was in front of him. 

“Death.” There was a twisted laugh. “ Says.” The head twitched. “ Hi.”

“Josh-Joshua?” Jeonghan stuttered. The fingers digging into his shoulders pressed harder. Jeonghan flinched, glancing at his bare shoulders. No hands were there, but he could just make out the outlines of fingers on his shirt.

“nO” 

Jeonghan snapped his gaze back to the man in front of him. The smile was gone. His hands were reaching a little farther. Jeonghan could swear his breathe was brushing against Joshua’s fingers.eta

“Joshua.” Jeonghan repeated. He reached an arm out; It worked last time. Joshua calmed down last time. Joshua realized where he was last time. Jeonghan helped him last time. It HAS to work this time. “Joshua. It’s me.”

Suddenly the demonic re-appeared. “ aND It’S ME” 

Joshua lunged forward, his fingers relentlessly circling around Jeonghan’s neck. Slamming his head back onto the ground. Jeonghan saw stars.

“J-Josh-Joshua.” Jeonghan choked out. The sound of wings flapping around them echoed. A growl escaped. And when a pair of soft, lips pressed against his;

The world turned white.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HI! I MISSED YOU ALL! 
> 
> This chapter does not live up to the hype nor excitement, and definitely not the long hiatus. I'm really deeply sorry. I really do not have a good excuse except I just couldn't get myself to sit down and write. I told myself, as long as I reach six pages for this chapter than I can post it, but even so I feel it is not a good one. Perhaps, next time.
> 
> I still hope you all greatly enjoyed it. 
> 
> To the new readers, I hope you have enjoyed this crazy as ride and are ready for the next couple of chapters which are currently in the works. 
> 
> To the returning readers, how the hell are you still here? Y'all are amazing and deserve all the love. 
> 
> Now in typical VAY fashion I have to be motherly and give some daily advice. Today I'm not lecturing on crazy, hardcore stuff. Today, I want to talk about school. 
> 
> Those who are struggling in High school, you will hear it again and again, that College will be better. I personally can say it is one of the best things to have happened to me, but please do not ignore the chances you have in high school. I'm not telling you to ditch who you are and try to be something you are not. I'm telling you that high school is still going to be part of your life. Don't stop yourself from joining a club, because you say "you can do it in college".  
> Procrastination of homework is one thing, procrastination of life is something completely different. I didn't learn this until late in high school, but even learning it with a month or two left, will help immensely. 
> 
> Grades are important, SATs are important, but also learning who you are is important. You don't have to go on a crazy adventure to a foreign country, or have that one crazy drunken party to figure out who you are. You can try something small, like cooking and see if you like it. You can try a new sport, or learn a dance. Find that "talent" that separates you from others. And let that talent be insane, because its a lot fun to show it off in college. People in college WILL be impressed. And if you find some judgmental assholes who aren't impressed, that means they are still trying to figure shit out about themselves. you don't need to help them do so, you don't need to be at their side to do so, but don't spend too much time thinking about them. 
> 
> Because there WILL be people who will find you amazing. 
> 
> And if you need someone to brag about your amazingness, leave it in the comments, or message me, or message someone you trust. 
> 
> I bet y'all have some of the most interesting hobbies and talents. 
> 
> Your Obedient Servant,
> 
> V.AY
> 
> PS: I have received so much love on the last chapter. Your comments made me cry so much, I don't know how all of you gave this story a chance. I don't know what inspired you wonderful people to comment, but it makes my heart feel so warm knowing you all cared. I only hope I can deliver on the last few chapters and do not dissapoint such amazing, kind-hearted people. Love you all


	15. Chapter 14: The Beginning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “ You will be fun, and you will be perfect.” The demon whispered. “ Do not be scared, you will become what you are meant to become, you will be what you are meant to be.”
> 
> Joshua felt his lungs constrict, he grasped for his chest. 
> 
> “ A kiss is so powerful, isn't it?…Become mine child of god.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ( I didn't edit...haha..hahhaha..whoops)
> 
> I have discovered writing a story in non-chronological order is difficult and I really shouldn't attempt it... but here I am. 
> 
> I am super excited to bring you all this chapter because I've been thinking about it for A REALLY LONG TIME! While writing it I had to go through all my chapters again to make sure information was consistent ( Cause I sort of lost my notes for this story... still looking for it), and had to make sure most, if not all, questions can be and will be answered in the next two chapters.

It is hard to believe, that this adventure began on a normal day. It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining, the clouds were sparkling, and the three investigators were lost in a new town. For some, the concept of being lost would be terrifying, and for these three, in many cases, they would agree. However, when left to their own devices, scavenging for a new job to take on, it didn’t matter where they were or where they were going. In this case, where they found themselves was in a fairly deserted town:

The streets were bare, but Joshua would conclude it was probably due to the abnormal heat that day. If one was to look closely, it was possible to see the restaurants and cafes were fairly full.

Jeonghan had relaxed himself on the hood of Seungcheol’s infamous red car: His hair was hanging low in a pony tail,as he lazily flipped through one of Joshua’s plentiful journals. The second eldest, paid more attention to the change in the youngest’s hand writing rather than the actual contents. Joshua knew this, but he appreciated Jeonghan’s efforts at even looking at his writings. 

Joshua had the backseat door open, his feet dangling out towards the, long, empty, road they were parked along. In his hands were random gadgets he had found along their most recent travels: A town back, they had found a pawn shop and with Joshua’s deduction skills, Jeonghan’s charisma, and Seungcheol’s mediating of the sale, the youngest found himself with a box full of almost useless junk - useless to anyone else that is. Piled behind the boy were the rest of the trinkets they gathered separated into two piles; fiddled with, and yet to be fiddled with. 

Jeonghan had noted that it was a counterproductive idea, seeing as how Joshua would reach back for what ever he could even if he already played with it a bit. Besides, at the end of the day they would all go back into the same box no matter if he finished investigating the differences. Joshua had scrunched his nose, and rolled his eyes. 

The two of them were waiting for Seungcheol. The eldest had wandered off into the shops adorning the street. Two of which were restaurants, where Seungcheol promised to ditch his pride and get them a meal from them even if he had to beg for it. Another of the buildings was a travel agency, which hung a small sign advertising they had historical events documented in that building. It is not difficult to assume what Seungcheol was striving to achieve there. 

“Is he done yet?” Jeonghan whined dropping his arms to the side, but still making sure to keep a steady grip on Joshua’s journal. 

“ Is he walking towards us?” Joshua asked, not even looking from the box in his hand. 

“No.”

“Then there’s your answer.”

“ Can’t he go any faster?” 

“You could always go inside, yourself, and help out.”

There was a moment of silence. 

“ Or, I could stay here, and not do that.”

“ Wow. Amazing counter offer. It’ll definitely make a difference,” Joshua eyed Jeonghan through the windshield. 

Practically feeling the eyes on the back of his head, Jeonghan flipped over and pressed his face against the glass, sticking his tongue out. Joshua chuckled slightly and retaliated, sticking his own tongue out with a shake of his head. Through the glass, the youngest could see Jeonghan’s face relax, a slight smile gracing his lips. 

“ I’m bored.” Jeonghan suddenly announced. Joshua stifled a laugh. 

“ Wow, didn’t notice.”  
With a slight pout, Jeonghan rolled over until his head could peak around the side of the car, watching Joshua. “ What you looking at?”

“A Box.”

“Does it do anything?”

“ I don’t think so, but I think I can attach it to the-,”

“-Come over here and cuddle.” Jeonghan interrupted. 

Joshua tilted his head at Jeonghan. The second eldest had let an arm dangle free, off the side of the car. The hand reached out to him, making childish grabby hands. The youngest tried to fight the smile appearing on his face, but to no avail. 

“Cuddle?”

“Yes.”

“Just Cuddle?” Joshua asked, narrowing his eyes in playful suspicion.

Jeonghan smirked. “ We’ll see. Now put your weird box down and come to Hyung.” 

The youngest rolled his eyes, but obliged anyway. After setting his box down, and closing the door, Joshua waddled over to Jeonghan. The moment Joshua laid a hand on the hood, the young boy hissed. 

“ This is burning! How are you lying on it.” 

Jeonghan shrugged, rolling over to make room. “ Maybe I’m so cool, it cancels out.” Joshua crinkled his nose as a response. “ Just get up here and cuddle me!” Jeonghan ordered. 

Joshua placed a hand on the hood again, only to take it off. “ I’ll burn.” 

“ Then lie on top of me, I’ll protect you.”

A few seconds of mulling over the offer, Joshua finally climbed aboard. His movements were quick. As he laid his arms and hands above Jeonghan’s chest, he kept his skin away from the burning car. 

“See? It’s not so bad.”

Joshua shrugged, as Jeonghan’s arms slowly relaxed on his back. The youngest could feel Jeonghan’s fingers slowly create soothing, circles. It was difficult for the boy to keep himself awake. 

A few, calm minutes passed before the two of them smelled something mouth-watering. Jeonghan’s eyes snapped open, and his head twisted to the smell. In front of him was a grinning Seungcheol holding a pizza teasingly beside them. In his other hand were a couple of manila folders. 

“ I got us dinner!” Seungcheol announced, however his voice was surprisingly quiet. Jeonghan raised an eyebrow. In response, Seungcheol nodded towards the napping boy on the long-haired, boy’s chest. Jeonghan chuckled, moving his hand up to curl into Joshua’s hair. 

“ It smells good.” Jeonghan whispered. 

“ How long has he been asleep?” 

“Don’t know… we’ve only been lying here for the past few minutes.” 

Seungcheol chuckled, leaning over his car to place a small kiss on the crown of the boy’s head. “ Fair enough… if you can sit up without waking him I’ll hand you a piece. We can leave the leftovers in the car to keep it warm, until ‘Shua wakes up.” 

Jeonghan chuckled. “ This car has a new function, a food warmer!” Seungcheol grinned. 

As the eldest climbed up, and Jeonghan shuffled to lean against the window, he grimaced. “ How are you lying on this, its scalding.”

“ You and Joshua are both babies.” Jeonghan rolled his eyes, taking the pizza box from him, to let Seungcheol climb up easier. 

“Maybe we just have working nerves.” 

“ Touche.” 

Seungcheol stared at him with a slight pout.

“What?” Jeonghan asked.

“ You could have easily made a joke and said “ Ouch, that hit a nerve”,” Seungcheol mumbled. With a dramatic gasp, Jeonghan gently punched Seungcheol’s shoulder.

“Just give me my damn pizza.”

“Whatever you say, your highness.” 

As they got comfortable eating, Seungcheol flipped open the manila folders. 

“What are those?” Jeonghan asked, peaking over the older’s shoulder.

“ A possible new expedition.” Seungcheol took a bite out of his pizza. 

The two of them flipped through the contents, only skimming the information. Most of the information seemed to have been freshly printed news articles, and website forum posts. No matter, it seemed like a simple one; About two towns over, a museum was trying to, quietly, ask for help with a paranormal activity. According to the folders, a couple times one week someone would wake up in a room of the museum with little to no memory of the past couple of hours. In some cases, the people would be found dead in the mornings. Security guards often would explain that they would see strange shadows lurk through the hallways both day and night. When they would follow the figures, the figures would mysteriously vanish. 

Visitors often complained how another visitor was scaring their children, or acting inappropriate in their vicinity. The staff would try to locate the perpetrators, but in most cases they found the confused victims. In other cases, the staff would describe with fear, of the demon that tried to attack them. 

Amongst the endless paragraphs of gory details, were forum updates. Jeonghan glanced at those, noting the debate on how to tackle the situation seemed to be endless. 

“ Apparently a religious group took up the job.” Jeonghan announced.

Seungcheol nodded, and in mid bite responded; “ That’s what they said inside too, but the religious group has been there for a couple days now and nothing has changed.” 

“ Do you think the ghost is a hoax?”

“ With the amount of publicity this event is getting, possibly… but that may also just be the forums generating all the media.”

“ Well, when our smart boy wakes up, he’ll be able to tell us what to do.” 

Within a half hour, the sun had began to set, and Joshua was stirring awake. At that time, he found himself curled up in the backseat of the car. Jeonghan was manning the wheel, while Seungcheol gazed curiously at a hand held map- which Joshua found ridiculous. (Was he even holding it right?). 

“ Where we going,” And after a moment of thinking, Joshua added; “ Where’s my food?”

Seungcheol glanced back, a soft smile adorning his face. “ We are heading to our next, possible, job.”

Silence.

“And my food?” Joshua asked tiredly. Seungcheol reached to the backseat and pulled a blanket. Underneath was a pizza box. 

“ Voila.”

Happily, the second youngest dived into the meal. Seungcheol kept his chin hooked onto the back of his seat, watching the other. Jeonghan’s gaze flickered to the rear view mirror, only to see sauce being left on Joshua’s cheek. 

Jeonghan chuckled. “ Were you starving or something?”

“None of your business.” 

The two oldest laughed softly. Seungcheol turned in his seat once again, moving the map around in front of him. Joshua watched with amusement for a couple minutes: He held back a laugh after the first minute, when Seungcheol finally realized it was upside down. He almost died holding his breath when Seungcheol mumbled how this map was not in their native tongue but in some ancient, long-lost language. He could only smile when Seungcheol took out a pen and started writing notes while trying to figure out where they were.

Only when Seungcheol seemed like he was about to lose his mind, did Joshua reach a hand over Seungcheol’s shoulder. Wordlessly, Seungcheol handed the map to the other. 

Joshua smiled as he quickly glanced at the window to check the highway number, and found their place on the map. “ So Where are we going?”

As they described the job, making small jokes about the contents and how the professional religious group is struggling, Joshua became quiet. He listened. He smiled. He chuckled, but he did not continue to talk. The youngest could feel his mind distancing himself from the conversation. Only holding onto a thread for sanity’s sake. 

He remembered old hands curling around his biceps and forcing him onto the marble stairs of the church. He remembered gargling for air as he was practically drowned in water. There was hardly time to breathe as his head would be pushed into buckets upon buckets of water. Memories of white robes blocking his view of his parents as they shoved him onto tables. Crosses pressing against his skin, chanting echoing, clogging his senses. He thought back to being dragged into a dark room, where curses of his demon-hood were partnered with painful lashes. The priests had tried everything.

Lying to save himself was the only thing he could do. 

He had wondered if, such a thought, such a need to flee the priests he adored who were helping him, was in fact a demon’s thought all along. However as he aged, he figured even if it was, no amount of torture on a young boy should be accepted. 

It wasn’t until Jeonghan had decided to stop driving and switch with Seungcheol, did Joshua find himself aware of his surroundings once more.

“So?” Jeonghan asked as he slid into the passenger seat. “ Should we take the job.” 

Unsure, Joshua nodded. “ I mean if the church can’t do it, it’s not like we’ll do any worse…”

“ You okay there?” Jeonghan asked.

“Yeah… just not feeling so good.”

And they were off, confidently this time. ( Now that Seungcheol was no longer guiding them with the map.) The trip was quick and steady. Seungcheol silently was filled with glee that he didn’t have to pull over every thirty minutes for the most random of requests. For the first time in what felt like weeks, they had a mission, a goal. Joshua curled up in the back fiddling with his gadgets. 

Jeonghan stared tiredly out the door. Closer they neared their destination, more restless he felt. There was a soft tingle in his back. Every couple of minutes or so, he’d try to readjust, to stretch it out. Nothing seemed to work.

To Jeonghan’s relief though, the town was on the edge of the water. The moment Jeonghan breathed in the air of sea water, he felt his body relax. He rolled down the window, leaning his head out. His long hair tangling in the wind. The second eldest watched the town pass by; It was filled with red and yellow houses, the vibrancy starting to fade after years of standing proud in the towns. Multiple people were walking about, holding hands, laughing. People were so at ease, and Jeonghan loved it.

In the backseat, Joshua watched, his fingers lightly pressed against the glass. He watched as a father and daughter, decked out in beach-gear, sprinting down the road towards the board walk just a few yards away. The daughter was a few steps ahead. Her hand tightly tugging at the older gentleman’s. Her head twisted back to watch her father’s delighted face stare back at hers. At the crosswalk parallel to them, just feet before the boardwalk, the walking light turned red. At the same time, the young girl took a step off the sidewalk.

Joshua sat up straight, yelling a quick, “ Stop the car!” at Seungcheol. The eldest, instinctively slammed on the break. The second eldest snapped his own head back, white stars dancing in front of him as he did so. 

Joshua felt his heart stop as he watched it in slow motion. He sat only a couple feet away. A red car, similar to Seungcheol’s own, only brighter, newer, fancier, sped down the road. The young girl had slipped her hand out of her father’s as she took another soft step back onto the road. 

Joshua tried the door, it was locked. As fast as he could he unlocked it. 

The father’s eyes widened. The man reached out.

Joshua pushed the door open, as the screeching of the new car resonated throughout the town. The youngest boy’s foot was just touching the concrete, a hand still on the door, when the car came to a stop. 

There was a moment of silence in the town. People began to gather around. 

As Joshua stood straight, realizing it was too late, he noticed the driver’s door to their own car was open. He glanced in, Jeonghan had one hand out, another pressing the emergency break into place. The long-haired boy’s eyes were wide, confused tears shimmering in the corners. Joshua twisted his head back towards the commotion. 

There on the concrete, on the sidewalk closer to them, away from the corner was Seungcheol. His body was curled around another, his back facing the two boys. The father stumbled over to them, kneeling down. Joshua stared as the older man tried to pry the arms off from around the child. Seungcheol held a tight grip for a moment, before his shoulders slacked. 

The young girl crawled out of the hold, latching onto her father. Seungcheol pushed himself up, brushing off his jeans. 

“ WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK!” 

Joshua snapped his head around only to see Jeonghan, crawling his way over the drivers seat and out of the car. Seungcheol also twisted his body to watch as their boyfriend stomped his way over to him. 

“ When Joshua says stop the car, that does not mean, in any way shape or form, that you can just go and be a super hero.” The male had his hand out, a sharp finger angrily waving at the other. The crowd began to step back. “ We’ve been over this. You. Do. Not. just jump into the middle of some random street, or some person’s house, or some random fight, or into an animal cage, or into a grocery store, or over the counter, or under the counter, or in….” 

The crowd began to disperse, except for a few who were readily recording the scene with their phones. Jeonghan had made it into Seungcheol’s bubble, grabbing the collar of his shirt tightly. 

Joshua, as Jeonghan went off, slowly closed all their doors and made his way over to the other two.

“…to save anyone. That is not your job.” Jeonghan growled out. 

Awkwardly, the father scuffled over to the angered male. His daughter stood behind him, but kept her hands tightly around his leg. “ Um, excuse me.” 

Jeonghan was practically vibrating as he twisted his head to the older gentleman. “Yes?”

The gentleman fiddled with his fingers for a second, before grasping at his daughter’s hand. “ I understand your concern, but I do want to thank him for what he did.” At that, the man turned to Seungcheol. “ Thank you so much, I don’t, I-I can’t.” The man began to tear up.

Joshua fidgeted about a foot away, wondering if he should interfere. 

“ What you did was very brave, and I can’t thank you enough.” The man managed to say, voice just above a whisper.

“ It wasn’t a problem at all.” Seungcheol responded.

Jeonghan’s eyes narrowed. “ Don’t thank him, you’re only encouraging him to do it again.”

“But I-,” The man started. “ I could have lost my daughter, I just want to-,”

“And I could have lost my boyfriend.” 

There was a silence between the two. Jeonghan’s hand had released it’s hold on the collar. The fingers gently, gracefully moved to the bottom of Seungcheol’s shirt, curling into it. Seungcheol reached for it, only for Jeonghan to slap away the comforting hand. The second eldest never weakened his grip though.

As the moment stretched, Joshua stumbled over. “ But everyone is okay now, right?” Joshua asked. 

The youngest male, crouched down a bit, looking into the eyes of the young girl. “ Are you alright?”

The girl, only moments prior filled with innocent joy and excitement, stared back with fear and uncertainty. Joshua gave a soft smile, tilting his head. “ Are you hurt?”

The girl shook her head. Joshua tilted his head to look at Seungcheol. “ Are you hurt?”

Seungcheol shook his own. Joshua watched as Jeonghan’s feet shuffled closer to the boy’s side. At that, Joshua stood up. 

“Everyone is okay. You should go enjoy your day at the beach.” Joshua suggested. 

The father nodded solemnly. “But if there is anyway I could thank you, just tell me, please.” 

Seungcheol stepped up and smiled kindly, before exchanging numbers with the man. “ That’s my information at least. We don’t need anything, but if you happen to have baked an extra batch of cookies and need some more people to eat it, we’d happily accept .” 

The older man only smiled and began to pull his daughter away. Before they could cross the road, Joshua called back. “ Actually, can you direct us to the Museum.” 

 

After receiving information, exchanging numbers and a few more salty glares from Jeonghan, the three made it back into the car. 

“ How are you not upset ‘Shua.” Jeonghan groaned, slamming the door as he crawled in, earning a slight glare from Seungcheol.

“Careful with the car.” Seungcheol pouted, rubbing the interior softly. “ She’s old.” 

“ She’s falling apart is what she is.” Jeonghan responded. “ Right, ‘Shua?”

Silence. 

“‘Shua?” Jeonghan asked looking back. The younger male was fiddling with the handles of a box, quietly.

Seungcheol also turned in his seat. “ What’s wrong?” 

Joshua’s shoulders shook slightly. Noticing the tiniest movement, Jeonghan slapped Seungcheol’s shoulder. Softly, Seungcheol whispered an annoyed, “ Hey.”

After another moment of silence, Seungcheol reached out his hand. “ Joshua, sweety. Hey, look at me.” 

The young boy did. 

“ Like you said, everyone is okay. I’m okay.”

“I only said that for the girl ‘Cheol.” Joshua muttered out. “ What were you thinking?”

“Exactly what you were,” Seungcheol started. “ Don’t think I didn’t notice you stepping out.” 

There was a soft swear from Jeonghan.

“That’s different! I saw it as it was happening.” Joshua retorted.

“And how was it different?” 

“…It just was.”

Jeonghan sighed, and reached his own hand out, settling it out on one of Joshua’s knees. “ I’m not going to go out and scold you like I did Seungcheol-,”

“Which was unnecessary,”

Jeonghan glared. “-but seriously what is wrong with you two! You two are only allowed to die by my hands you got it? Stop putting yourselves in situations where that can’t happen.”

“I’m sorry.” Joshua muttered. Jeonghan took in a deep breath before squeezing the youngest’s knee. 

“It’s okay.” He opened his arms wide. “ Come here.”

Although awkward, the three of them melted into a needed hug. They stayed like that, until a honk interrupted their moment, and Seungcheol restarted their car.

Only minutes later, did they find themselves at the entrance of the museum. It was huge, but only two stories. The rooms spread far across the land, an eating area nestled in the back facing out to sea. Walking in, it was clear the rooms were well kept. The floors were marble, mopped only earlier that morning. The ceilings, high. The long entrance way to the front desk was decorated with endless paintings. A young man awaited at the desk, his hands playing with a squishy ball, while he watched something at the desk. 

“Um, excuse me.” Joshua softly said. Even though his voice would hardly be heard by a mouse, it echoed in the caverns of the museum. 

“ Oh! Yes! Hello.” The young man said. 

“Yeah, um. We heard about a little ghost-,”

“There aren’t any ghosts here.” The man quickly said.

Jeonghan sighed and leaned onto the counter. “ We already know. We’re here to help solve the problem.”

There was a slight pause, before the young man leaned forward. “ We are open today, so nothing can happen right now. People will be coming in and out. You are free to look around, but until tomorrow morning there will be no ghost business, or ghost-talk. Got it?”

“Got it.” Seungcheol responded, before Jeonghan could. “ We will come back tomorrow morning.” 

 

The whole plan was going so smoothly. Joshua doesn’t understand where it had all went wrong. They had found a map of the museum and planned it out. Joshua had showed off his fancy equipment, surprisingly not boring Jeonghan in the process. In the morning they had met everyone, including the bishops of the Religious Roundtable holding their own religious practices in releasing the spirit. It all seemed like it was going fairly well, not including the subtle jabs at their relationship and sexuality. Jeonghan was constantly on high alert, his anger only building as the bishops stayed within his presence. 

It was a long day. Jeonghan and the leading bishop were constantly bickering;

…

“Is it our turn to try to get rid of the ghost, yet?”

“You have to wait your turn.”

“ We’ve waited. You had multiple days to finish this.”

“ It takes time.”

“Or maybe you’re just bad at it.”

“Excuse me.”

“Bless you… you’ll need it.”

….

“ Are you done yet?”

“ What do you think?”

“You are! So get out of the way.”

“What! GET OFF OF ME!”

“ I’m physically here, and you can’t get rid of me? Wow, you really suck at your job.”

Joshua would try to interfere, but Seungcheol usually stopped him before he could; Seungcheol had decided a bickering Jeonghan was safer than an angry, isolated Jeonghan.

…

“ I don’t get it, where’d he go?”

“Maybe we scared him off.”

“ I highly doubt that.”

“ So much optimism for a man with god on his side.”  
…

“Do you even know what you’re looking for?”

“ An ancient demonic ghost,”

“Is it even tied to this place? Do you know who you are looking for?”

“At the end of the day, it is all the same.”  
…

Sometimes the bishops would sigh amongst themselves;

…

“ Are we sure HE isn’t possessed by the ghost?”

“ Don’t even think about exorcising an innocent.”

…

 

It all was so normal, or it was supposed to be. It was nearing the end of the day. The bishops had set up in a new room, near the stairs on the second floor. They spread their candles around the room, salt being sprinkled at the windows. They did everything and anything they could to prevent a demon from entering, or leaving the space. Joshua recognized the practice all too well.

Jeonghan had sat himself against the wall, fiddling with a device to detect demonic energy. It acted like a sonar, beeping occasionally only to tell Jeonghan what he already knew; only the bishops were still in the room. 

Seungcheol stared over the shoulder of the men, as they opened their bibles in a circle. Joshua watched as well. The head bishop froze for a second before glancing at the three curious boys; “ Do you want to help?”

“ Are we allowed to?” Seungcheol asked.

“ I mean, it would be better for you three to participate than… constantly interrupting the practice.” The bishop narrowed his eyes at Jeonghan, who only smiled back angelically. 

And so they joined. After a half hour of communication and compromise, Jeonghan and Joshua ran their gadgets on high alert. Seungcheol, excitedly joined the bishops in the circle. 

Joshua thought it was going to go perfectly; He noticed every marking was down as if it was print, and every bible was read as if they were born with the language on their tongue. That is, he thought it was going perfect until the bishops began their songs. 

As the hymns were spoken, the candles flickered. Jeonghan rubbed his arms as the temperature dropped. The wind whistled, but the tone just slightly off; the sound uncomfortably inconsistent.The lights on their machines flashed. The artifacts in the room shook, as if a small earthquake was passing through. A vile of holy water sat in the middle of the circle toppled over. 

The bishops stood their ground.

Their voices got louder. The room got colder. The flashes on their electronics grew faster, larger, brighter. Jeonghan had eagerly tapped Joshua on the shoulder to show him the change, but the youngest was hypnotized. 

Joshua watched as the wind spun in circles, forging a small tornado. The pages of the bible flipped around hazardly. The bishops held their crosses out and above their heads. 

The youngest male felt something tug on his shirt, and the sounds of the room begin to quiet. He could see the lips of the men moving rapidly, casting off all of God’s words they knew. In the center of the bishop’s circle grew a dark fog. It seemed to struggle as it pushed and pulled to different ends of the circle desperate for an escape. The bishops bared their teeth as they yelled out threats in God’s name. Yet, everything seemed to have gone quiet for the small man. 

Jeonghan readied the equipment, a ghost net in hand. He began to creep up behind a couple of bishops. His hands; shaking. 

Joshua felt his own equipment slip from his hands. His eyes focusing in on the dark form. As he watched, slowly a clawed hand reached out, like a talon scratching for food, it swiped the air. The bishops continued their work. The claw creeped forward, pointing towards Joshua. Suddenly, two eyes began to glow in the dark mist. They were two separate colors, red and white. When it blinked, the eyes seemed to trade the colors. 

Joshua took a hesitant step forward. He could almost make out a sharp-toothed grin shining in the mist. 

“ Don’t fight it.” 

The words seemed to flutter right next to his ear. 

“ I’m only here for a good time.”

The sound fluttered around his other. 

“ I’m never gone.”

The sound was behind him.

“I’m always watching.”

Joshua whipped his head around, scanning for the other’s reactions. It seemed no one else was caught in the conversation. When Joshua opened his mouth to respond, to alert the others, he heard a heart breaking scream. Joshua froze. 

All the sound came back to him like a bomb. The boy fell to his knees, gripping at his ears. In front of him the bishop’s took a step forward, tightening the circle.

No longer was it just a black mist scratching for an exit, but flames began to encircle the creature. A cross was tossed into the circle, vanishing within the mist. A scratched, desperate cry for help strained to be heard as the black mist seemed to be dragged into the flames. 

Joshua thought it was almost over. 

But then the clawed hand whipped out of the flames, now only bone, focused on the candles and salt circles. It reached out, twisting it’s palm upwards before curling the talons in. Following the movements, the candles toppled over. The tiny flames lighting up the wooden second floor, lighting up small specks of salt. 

A bishop twisted his head back, with a soft stumble towards it. There was wicked laugh, a sarcastic cry. The head bishop yelled for the others to stay focused. But Seungcheol watched as the flames slithered their way towards them, grabbed a glass of the holy water and flinging it over the flames. The fire seemed to stand for a moment, teasingly, before collectively disappearing. In succession, the rest of the candles went out, and the wind stopped. 

In the middle of the once-bishop made circle laid a boned hand upon a charred in pentagram. The previously flung cross held between the fingers of the hand like a cigarette. 

“ I think we got him.” The bishop said proudly. The head bishop kneeled down, picking up the cross with his fingers, only to drop it immediately. “ It’s hot.”

“ Well it was burning.” Jeonghan added. The bishop glared back. 

“How do you know its gone?” Seungcheol asked. “ It literally left a message right there.”

“ It’s a passing message, but a threat that will never be seen to.” The bishop explained. “ Some demons try to leave a statement to terrify you into believing they'll never leave. Dramatic things.” 

The bishops then proceeded to clean it, carefully grabbing the trinkets the demon left behind. One of the men had squatted down next to the charred floor, trying to carve into it a new design, undoing the devil’s work.

Jeonghan glanced at his machine. It blinked as it had before, but it was inaccurate; It no longer showed the positions they were currently in, but instead it stayed blinking in the formation they were in only minutes prior. The four bishops standing in the circle, seungcheol beside them. Joshua and he stood right outside. 

Even though the bishops had scattered, picking up the fallen candles, the machine had yet to show it. 

“Joshua, I think its broken.”

Joshua tiredly glanced up at Jeonghan who frustratedly hit the side of the box. Joshua tried to smile, the corners of his lips twitching, yet he found he couldn’t. His eyes furrowed in confusion.

“You okay there?” Seungcheol asked, shuffling over to squat beside the younger male. 

Although unsure, Joshua nodded his head. Seungcheol smiled softly, before squeezing the boy in a hug. The eldest ruffled the other’s hair affectionately before separating. 

“ I’m not sure if we’re going to get paid for this since the bishop people did most of the work, but I’ll go ask…and begin to put the equipment away, okay?” Seungcheol asked. The older male stared into the younger’s eyes. He noticed they were unfocused, drooping. “ Relax for a bit while we do this.”

There was a slight nod in response. Seungcheol pressed his lips to the crown of the boy’s head before grabbing Jeonghan’s arm. 

“Come on, we got packing to do.”

“We didn’t even do anything. Can we get the Bishops to do it?” Jeonghan whined. 

“You think you can convince them to do it?”

A slight pause. “ Of course.”

“Really… you think they will listen to you?”

Another pause. “ Well…”

“Just help out here, Joshua will meet us downstairs.”

Once everyone was out of the room, Joshua crawled to the corner, leaning his back against the wall, heavily. His legs spread out. His eyes fluttered shut. He tried to concentrate on the slight creaking of the wood, the faint footsteps of the other’s walking down the stairs. As his body relaxed, fingers uncurling, the whispers of the wind began once more.

Joshua flickered his eyes open, in front of him the dust spun in the wind. 

“ I’m going to,” A voice began. It was deep, scratchy. “ Borrow you for a little.” 

The wind slowly darkened, the black mist from earlier appearing. The door to the room slammed shut. Creaking of floorboard resonated throughout the room, yet there were not feet pressing into them. Joshua brought his knees to his chest as he stared. The light of the room dimmed.

“ I can only do so much alone.” The words were slurred. Suddenly a claw, no longer the bone he saw moments ago, reached out of the smoke once more, the glowing eyes blinking back into existence. 

“ You-you were killed.” Joshua stuttered.

“Ah, but I am never gone.” The voice seemed to echo beside him. Joshua whipped his head around, yet nothing was there. “ I am always watching.”

Slowly, the hand was followed by humanoid-figure. The head slowly creeping from the mist and showing a scaled, feathery texture, a nasty snarl and ever changing eyes. “ I need a favor.” 

Joshua slowly tapped his own body, searching for a cross of any kind.

“ A child can only do so much, you know.” A tongue slipped out, grazing it’s fangs. 

Joshua stayed quiet.

“ A child only has so many sins, but so many to make on their own.” The demon chuckled. Joshua winced as it seemed to only echo louder in his own ears. There was a pause

“ Let me taste your sins.”

And in a blink of an eye, Joshua felt lips attach to his own. The young boy reached up trying to grab the demon, only for his hands to vanish into nothing. It was only a moment, a moment of sharp teeth biting into his lips, a moment of a breath hiding in his lungs, a moment of his body going limp. And after that moment, he saw nothing. The world was dark, he reached his hands out but felt nothing. He tried to listen but only heard his own thoughts. He tried to breathe, but every breath didn’t feel like enough. He swore he was crying, but he felt nothing on his cheeks. His existence seemed to have vanished. 

And then there was laughter. 

“ A boy of greed~, I see.” The demonic voice chuckled. “ A boy of pride, loving a man of sloth and a man of… interesting.”

Joshua opened his mouth to scream, but nothing came out. 

“ You will be fun, and you will be perfect.” The demon whispered. “ Do not be scared, you will become what you are meant to become, you will be what you are meant to be.”

Joshua felt his lungs constrict, he grasped for his chest. 

“ A kiss is so powerful, isn't it?…Become mine child of god.” 

And with the Joshua found his eyesight, found himself struggling to remember the moments just prior.  
“Joshua.” It was Jeonghan’s voice. Joshua turned around, he wanted to run to him. He wanted to hold his arms out, ready to be comforted, to be cuddled, to be smothered with the love Jeonghan had to offer. He desired nothing more than the warmth of the other. But to his dismay, his arms reached out with intent of harm, intent not of his own heart. And his eyes unfocused once more.

 

That day had started off so beautifully. 

 

Seungcheol gasped awake, his hand clutching to his own chest. He snapped his body up, breathing out only to see his own breath float in front of him. His hands wrapped around himself, his fingers started to loose their color in the cold. He shook his head trying to center himself, but as he turned his head he wondered if he had even awoken at all.

Only a couple feet away from were Jeonghan and Joshua. The long haired man had his back pinned to the floor boards. His hand grasping at the other pressing into his throats. Another hand reaching out, trying to graze the cheek of the man, Joshua, holding him down. The light around the two flickered, high winds starting from behind Jeonghan’s back. 

Seungcheol lifted a leg, ready to pounce as Jeonghan croaked out the other’s name, only to stop mid step as Joshua pressed his lips against Jeonghan’s. 

The picture in front of him, was one of a renaissance painting. In front of him, Joshua held Jeonghan’s shirt desperately, as he lifted his head to his lips. Seungcheol watched as a translucent hand flickered in and out of existence on Jeonghan’s shoulder. The hand seemed to dig itself into it, struggling to pull the boy away from the kiss. Terrified, Seungcheol traced the hand to the flickering presence. He could only see the torso, but what was there was breathtaking: It was a beautiful woman, sparkling hair hovering over her shoulders. A pair of wings flapping fiercely behind her. Determined eyes, glossed over with shimmering pastel colors.

To the right, as Seungcheol switched his gaze to Joshua, he noticed a grey-maroon hand curling into Joshua’s hair from behind. The arm vanished into the black fog but seemed to connect with what Seungcheol could only describe as a pleased demon. The eyes flickered between red and white as he stared amused, the claws patting the youngest male’s head. Slowly the demon twisted his head towards Seungcheol, a knowing smirk, and a childish wink sent his way.

Both entities flickered, the fogs of the two beings beginning to intermingle. It was suffocating, taking up the whole room, only feeling more dense as it grew. 

Seungcheol stared at the two beings before he heard a a soft thump. His head snapped towards his boyfriends. Jeonghan’s reaching hand had gone limp. His wide eyes shifting from the colors red, to white, to red, to white, to red, before settling back on his originally brown irises. The angel’s hairs had darkened slightly, and the angle’s eyes faded into white as it began a chant. 

At that moment both the demon and Joshua cried out, backing away only a centimeter off the other boy. The demon’s proud smile slowly slipped into a grimace, a sharp tooth slipping from between his lips. The fingers caging Joshua’s head, dug into the boy, nails sharpening as he did so.

Seungcheol watched in horror as Joshua let out a soft cry. 

In that moment, the eldest man lunged forward, tackling his loved ones. He wrapped his arms around them tightly, holding them against his chest, leaving only his own back open to the entities behind them. 

“ STAY THE FUCK AWAY!” He cried out. He felt Joshua struggle in his arms. “ PLEASE LEAVE US ALONE”

Jeonghan had yet to move.

“ GO AWAY!” 

Joshua’s arm was reaching out of his hold. Seungcheol only grabbed it and pulled it closer to his own body. The winds had started to relax, but the mist had yet to vanish.

“ GO AWAY!” He screamed again, his voice cracking.

“Please” He practically whispered as he felt something try to pull Joshua out of his arms. “Please.”

“gO aWaaY.” A demonic voice mocked.

“Please.” 

“pLeeasE”

Seungcheol did not respond, only waited for the fog to slowly vanish. His own eyes closed tight. There was a tug on Jeonghan’s side. Seungcheol fixed his grip once more, not letting it loosen even a bit. He knew his hold would cause bruising, but nothing was going to break his determination. Nothing was going to separate him from these two.

“Please.” He whispered once more. 

The room was silent.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!!!! It's only been like a month! That's a record I think.... maybe... possibly. Not really, but I'm patting myself on the back anyway.
> 
>  
> 
> What did you all think about this chapter? Is this what you thought this chapter was going to be? Is this what you wanted? Is Jeonghan okay? Is Joshua okay? Will they be okay? 
> 
> What do you think of the two entities? I really wish I was an artist cause I've been wanting to make this scene into a picture.... I think I'm going to do it anyway...
> 
>  
> 
> Once again I have a little advice to hand you all. To my lovely followers and friends struggling with finding jobs, if you are right out of high school, or college, or anything... I know it might seem so incredibly stressful. I know it feels like you are rushing against a clock, even though you know you aren't. It is hard to stop that anxiety. 
> 
> I am also facing those challenges. What I want to tell you though, is don't sell your self short with this stuff. (Definitely my followers who are minorities in their countries). I say this for a couple of reasons:
> 
> 1\. You might find an amazing opportunity as an intern, or as an assistant. Something that isn't status-quo but like if you are an artist and you get to work under another artist. This is great, but don't let them take advantage of your art, or your talent. If you can, ask for a set wage, and start off the debate, higher than you want and make it clear you are willing to find a compromise. (BARGAINING PEOPLE). I know working for experience is a thing, but don't let people take advantage of you. I had a boss who did, and some of my amazing work will be sold under his name.
> 
> 2\. On the other hand, You might find a job that is amazing and phenomenal, but its not what you expected it to be. Like working in some top office, or something. Your wage may be a little lighter than what you thought it was going to be, the work is different than you had thought it would be. That's okay. You aren't bad at your job, and you aren't only worth the payment youre getting. It's just hard starting from the beginning. Don't let these numbers and cultural concepts dictate how amazing you are. 
> 
> Keep working on you, keep working to be the best you. Jobs may not be perfect, and if you are in a position that lets you, try different jobs. Try other things, and while you do so work on your hobbies. 
> 
> Some people aren't financially in the position to randomly switch jobs. That doesn't make them lesser than others, that doesn't make them less talented. They are just in a different position, and they are working hard and that is amazing! They are amazing. You are  
> amazing. 
> 
> What I am trying to say is  
> Don't forget to also put in time for things you love, and to show off how amazing you are.
> 
> Anyway Only two-ish more chapters left! Wow has the time flown. Its insane where this story started, and how it changed and warped, until it became what it is today. 
> 
> Hope you continue to enjoy and love it
> 
> (Check me out on Twitter: @vaywhat or WhatVaySay)
> 
> Sincerely, your obedient servant
> 
> V.AY


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